Association of low muscle strength with metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease: A nationwide study

Table 1 Characteristics of study participants according to the quartiles of muscle strength

	Q1	Q2	Q3	Q4	P for trend
N (unweighted)	4305	4347	4397	4300
Age (yr)	55.9 ± 0.4	49.2 ± 0.4	44.6 ± 0.3	39.9 ± 0.2	< 0.001
Sex (men)	45.2 (1.0)	45.9 (0.9)	46.2 (0.9)	48.0 (0.9)	0.172
Current smoker	13.6 (0.7)	16.6 (0.7)	17.7 (0.7)	20.3 (0.8)	< 0.001
Physical activity	38.5 (1.0)	46.4 (1.0)	51.1 (0.9)	53.1 (0.9)	< 0.001
Income (lowest quartile)	28.8 (1.0)	16.5 (0.7)	10.7 (0.6)	8.0 (0.5)	< 0.001
Education (≤ 12 yr)	45.4 (1.2)	28.1 (0.9)	16.9 (0.7)	8.5 (0.5)	< 0.001
BMI (kg/m2)	26.0 ± 0.1	24.7 ± 0.1	23.5 ± 0.1	21.8 ± 0.1	< 0.001
Waist circumference (cm)	88.0 ± 0.2	84.0 ± 0.2	80.5 ± 0.2	76.3 ± 0.2	< 0.001
Handgrip strength (kg)	21.8 ± 0.2	27.8 ± 0.2	31.2 ± 0.2	35.6 ± 0.2	< 0.001
Muscle strength (handgrip strength/body mass index)	0.8 ± 0.01	1.1 ± 0.01	1.3 ± 0.01	1.6 ± 0.01	< 0.001
Systolic BP (mmHg)	122.7 ± 0.4	118.2 ± 0.3	115.2 ± 0.3	112.1 ± 0.3	< 0.001
Diastolic BP (mmHg)	75.3 ± 0.2	75.8 ± 0.2	75.2 ± 0.2	74.2 ± 0.2	< 0.001
AST (IU/L)	24.5 ± 0.2	23.1 ± 0.2	21.5 ± 0.2	20.2 ± 0.1	< 0.001
ALT (IU/L)	26.0 ± 0.5	24.2 ± 0.4	21.0 ± 0.3	18.4 ± 0.2	< 0.001
Total cholesterol (mg/dL)	191.4 ± 0.7	194.3 ± 0.7	194.1 ± 0.6	188.8 ± 0.6	< 0.001
HDL-C (mg/dL)	47.4 ± 0.2	49.9 ± 0.2	51.6 ± 0.2	54.0 ± 0.2	< 0.001
LDL-C (mg/dL)	115.0 ± 0.7	116.9 ± 0.6	116.5 ± 0.6	112.3 ± 0.5	< 0.001
Triglycerides (mg/dL)	145.6 ± 2.0	137.5 ± 2.0	130.1 ± 1.9	112.5 ± 1.6	< 0.001
Fasting glucose (mg/dL)	106.1 ± 0.5	100.8 ± 0.4	97.6 ± 0.4	93.8 ± 0.3	< 0.001
HbA1c (%)	5.9 ± 0.02	5.7 ± 0.01	5.6 ± 0.01	5.4 ± 0.01	< 0.001
hs-CRP (mg/L)	1.7 ± 0.04	1.2 ± 0.04	1.1 ± 0.03	0.8 ± 0.03	< 0.001
Obesity	56.7 (0.9)	44.0 (1.0)	28.7 (0.8)	11.6 (0.6)	< 0.001
Hypertension	45.4 (1.0)	30.5 (0.8)	21.5 (0.7)	12.4 (0.6)	< 0.001
Diabetes mellitus	22.5 (0.7)	13.1 (0.6)	7.8 (0.4)	3.9 (0.3)	< 0.001
Dyslipidemia	31.8 (0.9)	28.1 (0.9)	21.2 (0.7)	14.1 (0.6)	< 0.001

Data are presented as mean ± SE or percentage (SE). Q: Quartile; BMI: Body mass index; BP: Blood pressure; AST: Aspartate aminotransferase; ALT: Alanine aminotransferase; HDL-C: High-density lipoprotein cholesterol; LDL-C: Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol; HbA1c: Glycated hemoglobin; hs-CRP: High-sensitivity C-reactive protein.