Ann Geriatr Med Res.  2019 Dec;23(4):183-189. 10.4235/agmr.19.0042.

Handgrip Strength in the Korean Population: Normative Data and Cutoff Values

• Lee YL
• Lee BH
• Lee SY

• KMID: 2470654
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.4235/agmr.19.0042

Abstract

BACKGROUND
We aimed to report the age- and sex-specific normative data of Korean handgrip strength (HGS) and to establish the cutoffs values of low HGS in Korean populations.
METHODS
We analyzed the HGS data of 23,716 Koreans (10,793 men and 12,923 women) from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey from 2014 to 2017. The means with standard deviations (SDs) of HGS were calculated for each 5-year interval starting from 10 years of age. To determine the relationship between HGS and body mass index (BMI), correlation analysis was also performed. The sex-specific cutoff values for low HGS were presented by deriving the -2 SD values of healthy young adults.
RESULTS
The mean HGS was 39.5±9.3 kg in men and 24.4±5.3 kg in women. The mean HGS increased from 10 to 39 years and peaked at 35-39 years in both men (46.0±7.2 kg) and women (27.2±4.6 kg). Men showed a higher correlation between HGS and BMI (r=0.378) than did women (r=0.134). The cutoff values for low HGS were 29.6 kg for men and 16.8 kg for women for -2 SD below the reference for healthy young adults.
CONCLUSION
In Koreans, the mean HGS peaked at 35-39 years in both men and women, and the aging curve of HGS was steeper in men than in women. The cutoff values for low HGS were 29.6 kg and 16.8 kg for men and women, respectively.

Keyword

Hand strength; Muscle strength; Sarcopenia; Aging; Nutrition surveys

MeSH Terms

Aging
Body Mass Index
Female
Hand Strength
Humans
Korea
Male
Muscle Strength
Nutrition Surveys
Sarcopenia
Young Adult