Associations of Sarcopenia, Handgrip Strength and Calf Circumference with Cognitive Impairment among Chinese Older Adults

Objective To evaluate the associations of sarcopenia,handgrip strength and calf circumference with cognitive impairment among Chinese older adults.Methods Totally 2,525 older adults were recruited from the Healthy Aging and Biomarkers Cohort Study.Cognitive impairment was assessed by the Chinese Mini-Mental State Examination.Handgrip strength was calculated from the means of the right and left hand values.Calf circumference was measured at the site of maximum circumference of the non-dominant leg.The formula developed by Ishii was used to define sarcopenia.Multiple logistic regression was performed to evaluate the associations of sarcopenia,handgrip strength,and calf circumference with cognitive impairment.Results The prevalence of cognitive impairment was 34.36%.The adjusted odds ratio(OR)for cognitive impairment in individuals with sarcopenia was 2.55[95% confidence interval(95%CI):1.86-3.50].Compared with individuals in the first quartile(Q1)of calf circumference,the adjusted ORs in the second,third,and fourth quartiles(Q_(2),Q_(3),and Q_(4))were 0.75(95% CI:0.58-0.96),0.59(95% CI:0.44-0.79),and 0.62(95% CI:0.45-0.8),respectively.Compared with individuals in Q1 of handgrip strength,the adjusted ORs for Q_(2),Q_(3),and Q_(4) were 0.49(95%CI:0.38-0.62),0.31(95% CI:0.23-0.41),and 0.30(95%CI:0.21-0.44),respectively.Conclusion Sarcopenia,identified by low handgrip strength and low calf circumference,was positively associated with cognitive impairment.

Alcohol Cessation in Late Life is Associated with Lower Risk of Cognitive Impairment among the Older Adults in China

Objective Evidence regarding alcohol consumption and cognitive impairment is controversial.Whether cessation of drinking alcohol by non-dependent drinkers alters the risk of cognitive impairment remains unknown.This study prospectively evaluated the potential association between the history of lifetime alcohol cessation and risk of cognitive impairment.Methods This study included 15,758 participants age 65 years or older,selected from the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey(CLHLS)that covered 23 provinces in China.Current alcohol use status,duration of alcohol cessation,and alcohol consumption before abstinence were self-reported by participants;cognitive function was evaluated using Mini-mental State Examination(MMSE).Causespecific hazard models and restricted cubic splines were applied to estimate the effect of alcohol use on cognitive impairment.Results Among the 15,758 participants,mean(±SD)age was 82.8 years(±11.9 years),and 7,199(45.7%)were males.During a mean of 3.9 years of follow-up,3,404 cases were identified as cognitive impairment.Compared with current drinkers,alcohol cessation of five to nine years[adjusted HR,0.79(95%CI:0.66-0.96)]and more than nine years[adjusted HR,0.82(95%CI:0.69-0.98)]were associated with lower risk of cognitive impairment.Conclusion A longer duration of alcohol cessation was associated with a lower risk of cognitive impairment assessed by MMSE.Alcohol cessation is never late for older adults to prevent cognitive impairment.