Predicting handgrip power of young adult population among major ethnic groups of Sabah: a multivariate analysis

Association Between Handgrip Strength and Cardiovascular Disease Risk in MASLD: A Prospective Study From UK Biobank

BACKGROUND

This study aimed to investigate the association between handgrip strength (HGS) and cardiovascular disease (CVD) in individuals with metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) using data from the UK Biobank cohort.

METHODS

A total of 201 563 participants were enrolled in this study. The HGS was measured using a Jamar J00105 hydraulic hand dynamometer. MASLD was defined as the presence of hepatic steatosis accompanied by one or more cardiometabolic criteria. Hepatic steatosis was identified using a fatty liver index ≥ 60. Advanced liver fibrosis was defined by a fibrosis-4 (FIB-4) score > 2.67. To examine the differences in the incidence of CVD, male and female participants were divided into non-MASLD, MASLD with high HGS, MASLD with middle HGS, and MASLD with low-HGS groups.

RESULTS

Of the study participants, 75 498 (37.5%) were diagnosed with MASLD, with a mean age of 56.5 years, and 40.6% were male. The median follow-up duration was 13.1 years. The frequency of incident CVD events increased significantly across groups: 10.9% in non-MASLD, 13.3% in MASLD with high HGS, 14.8% in MASLD with middle HGS, and 18.4% in MASLD with low HGS for males (p < 0.001). In females, the frequency of incident CVD events was 6.1% in non-MASLD, 9.2% in MASLD with high HGS, 10.7% in MASLD with middle HGS, and 13.3% in MASLD with low HGS (p < 0.001). Using the non-MASLD group as a reference, multivariate-adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) (95% confidence intervals [CI]) for CVD varied according to HGS in individuals with MASLD. In males with MASLD, HRs (95% CI) were 1.03 (0.96-1.10) for high HGS, 1.14 (1.07-1.21) for middle HGS, and 1.38 (1.30-1.46) for low HGS; in females with MASLD, they were 1.07 (0.97-1.18) for high HGS, 1.25 (1.14-1.37) for middle HGS, and 1.56 (1.43-1.72) for low HGS. The incidence of CVD events increased as HGS decreased in participants with MASLD, regardless of the presence or absence of advanced liver fibrosis (all p < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

This large prospective cohort study using the UK Biobank showed that in MASLD, a decrease in HGS was associated with increased CVD risk.

Urinary pentosidine as a potential biomarker of muscle and physical performance in young adult men

Pentosidine is representative of the cross-linked structure of advanced glycation end products (AGEs) and has been suggested as a biomarker to assess bone and muscle quality. As studies on pentosidine in young adult men remain limited, we aimed to clarify the associations of urinary pentosidine with musculoskeletal status and physical performance in young men. Participants in this study comprised 32 men (age range: 19-39 years). Anthropometric measurements (body composition by InBody 430; stiffness index by ultrasound), muscle performance (grip strength by dynamometer, thigh muscle thickness by ultrasound), physical performance (functional reach test, 30-s chair stand test, and timed up and go test), and urinary biomarkers (pentosidine, N-telopeptide of type I collagen, and creatinine) were measured. In partial correlation analysis adjusted for age and height, higher urinary pentosidine levels were significantly associated with lower fat-free mass index (rho = - 0.368, p = 0.046), grip strength (rho = - 0.433, p = 0.017), rectus femoris thickness (rho = - 0.393, p = 0.032), and anterior thigh thickness (rho = - 0.416, p = 0.022), and a marginally inverse correlation was noted between urinary pentosidine levels and functional reach test (rho = - 0.327, p = 0.078). Our findings suggest that pentosidine correlates inversely with a few muscle and physical performance indicators. Pending future validations, urinary pentosidine may be a biomarker of AGEs in young men.

Preliminary study on hand dimensions as potential predictors of female populations native to forest and savanna zones in Ghana

The hand is a versatile structure that performs numerous tasks, ranging from exertion of great force such as grip, pinch and torque to execution of precise fine motor skills. The aim of current study was to undertake a preliminary study on hand dimensions as potential predictors of female populations native to the forest and savanna zones of Ghana. A total of one hundred (100) female students aged between 17 and 24 years were recruited into this study, comprising of 53 native to the forest zone and 47 native to savanna zone of Ghana between 12th June to 27th July, 2023 at the Department of Anatomy, School of Medicine and Dentistry, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology. Statistically significant positive correlation was observed between left hand length and right hand length (R = 0.923, p = 0.000). From the binary regression model, it could be speculated that left-hand breadth could predict female populations native to the savanna zone (LHB: β = - 2.37, Expβ = 0.09, p = 0.014). However, right-hand breadth and length and left hand length did not show any potential of prediction (RHB: β = 0.900, Expβ = 2.460, p = 0.410; RHL: β = 0.168, Expβ = 1.683, p = 0.803; LHL: β = - 0.300, Expβ = 0.741, p = 0.656). The study therefore may speculate that left handbreadth could have the potential to differentiate female populations native to savanna zone from females native to forest zone in Ghana.

A multivariate analysis to propose linear models for the stature estimation in the Sabahan young adult population

Background

Stature is one of the significant parameters to confirm a biological profile besides sex, age, and ancestry. Sabah is in the Eastern part of Malaysia and is populated by multi-ethnic groups. To date, limited studies on stature estimation have been conducted in Sabah. Hence, this study aims to construct population-specific stature estimation equations for the large ethnic groups in Sabah, Malaysia.

Objective

The aim is to propose linear models using different hand dimensions (hand span, handbreadth, hand length, middle finger length, and the second inter-crease in the middle finger) for the young adult male and females of the major ethnic groups in Sabah.

Materials & methods

This cross-sectional study framework used stratified random sampling on 184 male and 184 female young adults. An unpaired t-test and a one-way ANOVA were used to assess the differences in the mean between sex and ethnicities, respectively. The link between the response variable and explanatory variables was initially investigated using simple linear regression, followed by multiple linear regression.

Result

The present study demonstrated the highest association for the quantitative explanatory variables among hand length and stature (right side: r = 0.833; left side: r = 0.842). Simple equations were specifically developed without sex indicators, and ethnic and multiple linear regression was developed with sex and ethnic indicators. Multiple linear regression provided good estimation r² = 0.7886 and adjusted r² = 0.7853. The stature of 18 to 25 year old large ethnic groups in Sabah can be estimated using the developed models 90.218 + 3.845 LHL -5.950 Sex—2.308 Bajau -1.673 KadazanDusun + 2.676 L2ICL. While, formula for each ethnic and sex KadazanDusun Male: Stature = 88.545 + 3.845 LHL+ 2.676 L2ICL, KadazanDusun Female: Stature = 82.595 + 3.845 LHL+ 2.676 L2ICL, Bajau Male: Stature = 87.910 + 3.845 LHL+ 2.676 L2ICL, Bajau Female: Stature = 81.960 + 3.845 LHL+ 2.676 L2ICL, Malay Male: Stature = 90.218 + 3.845 LHL+ 2.676 L2ICL, Malay Female: Stature = 84.268 + 3.845 LHL+ 2.676 L2ICL, Chinese Male: Stature = 90.218 + 3.845 LHL+ 2.676 L2ICL, and Chinese Female: Stature = 84.268 + 3.845 LHL+ 2.676 L2ICL.

Conclusion

The study reports anthropometric data and formulas for measuring the stature of major ethnic groups in Sabah, which can be used to compare future work.