Hand grip strength is associated with cardiopulmonary function in Chinese adults: Results from a cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND: The objective of this population-based study was to examine whether there was association of hand grip strength (HGS) with cardiopulmonary function in population without cardiopulmonary disease. METHODS: Data were derived from an ongoing cross-sectional survey of the National Physique and Health in Shanxi Province. There were 908 participants with the cardiac function tests and 380 participants with the pulmonary function tests. Multiple linear regression analysis was used to assess the association of HGS with cardiopulmonary function. RESULTS: Among participants with the cardiac function tests, HGS was positively associated with left ventricular end diastolic diameter in both genders (male: b = 0.010 (0.005, 0.015), P < 0.001; female: b = 0.008 (0.002, 0.014), P = 0.01) and left ventricular ejection fraction in males (b = 0.114 (0.027, 0.201), P = 0.01). Among participants with the pulmonary function tests, HGS was positively associated with vital capacity (male: b = 0.033 (0.021, 0.045); female: b = 0.033 (0.021, 0.045)), forced expiratory volume in 1 s (male: b = 0.023 (0.014, 0.032); female: b = 0.019 (0.010, 0.028)) and maximal voluntary ventilation (male: b = 1.186 (0.665, 1.708); female: b = 0.965 (0.453, 1.476)) in both genders (all P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: These results suggested that greater HGS was associated with favorable cardiopulmonary function in Chinese adults, thus HGS might be an indicator of cardiopulmonary function.