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Background: no study has examined the longitudinal association between hand-grip strength and mental health, such as depressive symptoms. Objective: we investigated the relationship between baseline hand-grip strength and the risk of depressive symptoms. Design: a prospective cohort study. Low hand-grip strength associates with depression Setting and Subjects: a prospective cohort study with a 1-year follow-up was conducted using 4,314 subjects from community-dwelling individuals aged 40--79 years in two Japanese municipalities, based on the Locomotive Syndrome and Health Outcomes in Aizu Cohort Study (LOHAS, 2008-10). Methods: we assessed baseline hand-grip strength standardised using national representative data classified by age and gender, and depressive symptoms at baseline and after the follow-up using the five-item version of the Mental Health Inventory (MHI-5). Results: the 4,314 subjects had a mean age of 66.3 years, 58.5% were women, and mean unadjusted hand-grip strength was 29.8 kg. Multivariable random-effect logistic regression analysis revealed that subjects with lower hand-grip strength (per 1SD decrease) had higher odds of having depressive symptoms at baseline [adjusted odds ratio (AOR) 1.15, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.06--1.24; P = 0.001]. Further, lower hand-grip strength (per 1SD decrease) was associated with the longitudinal development of depressive symptoms after 1 year (AOR 1.13, 95% CI 1.01-1.27; P= 0.036). Conclusions: using a large population-based sample, our results suggest that lower hand-grip strength, standardised using age and gender, is both cross-sectionally and longitudinally associated with depressive symptoms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Study Design: A cohort study.Objective: To investigate the association between psychosocial stress and low back pain (LBP)-related interference with daily living among college students.Summary Of Background Data: Few longitudinal studies have examined the likelihood of developing LBP in the presence of a designated psychosocial stressor. All participants in the present study were suddenly affected by the Great East Japan disaster after enrolment in our cohort study.Methods: The present study was initiated among 95 students at Fukushima Medical University in January 2011. We assessed psychosocial stress in students using the Japanese version of the Perceived Stress Scale (JPSS). Follow-up surveys were conducted in July 2011 and May 2013, analyzing 94 students. Students were then divided into three groups (improved, -19 to -4; Maintained, -3 to +4; Aggravated, +5 to +22) based on the tertile points of JPSS change from baseline to 4 months after the disaster. LBP-related interference with daily living was assessed using the Brief Pain Inventory (BPI) questionnaire. Linear regression modeling was performed with BPI at 4 months after the disaster as the outcome, and JPSS change, sex, history of LBP, baseline physical activity, and baseline BPI as explanatory variables.Results: We found a significant increase in BPI score for the aggravated stress group (β coefficient, +0.79; 95% confidence interval, +0.06-+1.53), compared with the improved stress group. History of LBP and higher physical activity were also significantly associated with BPI.Conclusion: The present study suggests that perceived psychosocial stress induced by the disaster may be associated with LBP-related interference with daily living among college students in Fukushima.Level Of Evidence: 3. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Study Design: A cohort study using data from the Locomotive Syndrome and Health Outcome in Aizu Cohort Study, a population-based prospective cohort study of residents of the towns of Tadami and Minamiaizu in Fukushima Prefecture, Japan.Objective: The aim of this study was to clarify the association between kyphotic posture and falls, and to investigate the presence or absence of sex differences.Summary Of Background Data: In our literature review, we found no studies focusing on sex differences in the association between kyphotic posture and falls.Methods: We included subjects aged more than 40 years who participated in annual health check-ups from 2009 to 2010. We analyzed the effects of kyphotic posture, measured using the wall-occiput test (WOT), on falls, adjusting for potential confounders, such as age, body mass index, symptoms of depression, sedative medication, and other comorbidities.Results: We enrolled a total of 1418 subjects into primary analyses (593 men, 825 women; mean [standard deviation] age, 68.1 [7.7] yrs). We then stratified subjects into the following groups according to the degree of kyphotic posture: nonkyphotic posture (n = 1138, 80.3%), mild kyphotic posture (n = 172, 12.1%), and severe kyphotic posture (n = 108, 7.6%). We observed no significant difference in the severity of kyphotic posture between men and women (P = 0.18). Overall, 284 subjects (20.0%) experienced at least one fall during the one-year period. After adjustment for potential confounders using a logistic regression model, we observed a significant association between severe kyphotic posture and falls for men [odds ratio (OR) 2.14 (1.01-4.57); P = 0.048]. In contrast, we observed no significant association for women [OR for severe kyphotic posture 0.80 (0.43-1.50), OR for mild kyphotic posture 0.91 (0.53-1.57)].Conclusion: We identified a sex difference in the association between kyphotic posture and falls in community-dwelling adults. In particular, severe kyphotic posture might only increase the incidence of falls in men.Level Of Evidence: 3. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]