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Tinetti mobility test is related to muscle mass and strength in non-institutionalized elderly people

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Abstract

Elderly people are characterized by a high prevalence of falls and sarcopenia. However, the relationship among Tinetti mobility test (TMT) score, a powerful tool to detect elderly people at risk of falls, and sarcopenia is still not thoroughly investigated. Thus, to determine the relationship between TMT score and muscle mass and strength, 337 elderly participants (mean age 77.1 ± 6.9 years) admitted to comprehensive geriatric assessment were enrolled. TMT score, muscle mass by bioimpedentiometer, and muscle strength by grip strength were evaluated. Muscle mass progressively decreased as TMT score decreased (from 15.3 ± 3.7 to 8.8 ± 1.8 kg/m2; p for trend <0.001). Similarly, muscle strength decreased progressively as Tinetti score decreased (from 34.7 ± 8.0 to 23.7 ± 8.7 kg; p for trend 0.001). Linear regression analysis demonstrated that TMT score is linearly related with muscle mass (y = 4.5x + 0.4, r = 0.61; p < 0.01) and strength (y = 14.0x + 0.8, r = 0.53; p < 0.01). Multivariate analysis confirms the strong relationship between the TMT score and muscle mass (r = 0.48, p = 0.024) and strength (r = 0.39, p = 0.046). The present study indicates that TMT score is significantly related to muscle mass and strength in non-institutionalized elderly participants. This evidence suggests that TMT score, together with evaluation of muscle mass and strength, may identify sarcopenic elderly participants at high risk of falls.

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Acknowledgments

We acknowledge all the participants included in the present study.

Authors’ contributions

B.C., L.I., D.D., Ga.G., Gi.G., G.T., and L.A. made the acquisition of data and the analysis and interpretation of data. C.F., B.D., and A.P. made substantial contributions to the conception and design, acquisition of data, analysis and interpretation of data, drafting the article or revising it critically for important intellectual content, and final approval of the version to be published. F.C made a substantial contribution to a revision of the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Translational Medical Sciences, University of Naples “Federico II”, Via S. Pansini, 80131, Naples, Italy

    Francesco Curcio, Claudia Basile, Ilaria Liguori, Gianluigi Galizia, Gianluca Testa, Assunta Langellotto, Francesco Cacciatore, Domenico Bonaduce & Pasquale Abete

  2. Department of Systems Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy

    David Della-Morte

  3. IRCCS San Raffaele Pisana, Rome, Italy

    David Della-Morte

  4. Division of Internal Medicine, AOU San Giovanni di Dio e Ruggi di Aragona, Salerno, Italy

    Gaetano Gargiulo

  5. Scientific Institute of Veruno, IRCCS Salvatore Maugeri Foundation, Novara, Italy

    Gianluigi Galizia

  6. Department of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Molise, Campobasso, Italy

    Gianluca Testa

  7. Division of Geriatrics, Ospedale “S. Maria di Ca’ Foncello”, Treviso, Italy

    Assunta Langellotto

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  1. Francesco Curcio
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Correspondence to Pasquale Abete.

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Funding

The study was financially supported by AIFA (Agenzia Italiana del Farmaco) of the Italian Minister of Health (cod. FARM7K7XZB).

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Curcio, F., Basile, C., Liguori, I. et al. Tinetti mobility test is related to muscle mass and strength in non-institutionalized elderly people. AGE 38, 525–533 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11357-016-9935-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11357-016-9935-9

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