Abstract
Aim : To clarify the influence of low skeletal muscle mass and high percent body fat on gait speed in community-dwelling people aged 65-74 years. Method : Body composition and usual gait speed were measured in 197 men and 203 women aged 65-74 years. Subjects were categorized according to whether their skeletal muscle index (SMI) was low (men: ≤6.87kg/m2 ; women: ≤5.46kg/m2) or normal, whether their percent body fat (%BF) was high (men: ≥25%; women: ≥30%) or normal, and whether their gait speed was slow (men: ≤1.163m/s; women: ≤1.250m/s) or normal. Furthermore, we conducted logistic regression analysis to determine which variables significantly influenced gait speed. Results : The prevalence of low SMI, high %BF, and slow gait speed was 19.8% (n=39), 52.3% (n=103), and 26.7% (n=52) in men and 23.6% (n=48), 62.1% (n=126), and 29.6% (n=60) in women, respectively. The prevalence of low SMI and high %BF in men was significantly higher than in women [men: 12.7% (n=25) ; women: 7.9% (n=16); p<.001]. Adjusted logistic regression analysis demonstrated a significant association between high %BF and slower gait speed [men: odds ratio (OR) 2.4, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.2-4.9, p=.02; women: OR, 2.2; 95% CI 1.1-4.6; p=.03]. Conclusion : These results suggest that high %BF is a risk factor for slow gait speed in Japanese men and women aged 65-74 years.
