Gait and Health-Related Physical Fitness Cut-off Values for Osteoporosis in Elderly Women

PURPOSE: This study aimed to determine the cutoff values for gait and health-related physical fitness associated with osteoporosis in community-dwelling elderly women.METHODS: A total of 180 elderly women (aged ≥60) participated. Stepwise multiple regression was used to identify the predictors of femoral neck-bone mineral density (FN-BMD) from the gait and fitness variables. A receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis was used to determine the cutoff points and predict the performance of osteoporosis. Finally, logistic regression was used to calculate the odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) of osteoporosis risk.RESULTS: Fast-pace stride length and upper body strength were identified as independent predictors of FN-BMD. The cutoff values for predicting osteoporosis were 129.2 cm (accuracy, 70.6%) for fast-pace stride length and 18.0 kg (accuracy, 69.4%) for upper body strength. Logistic regression analysis showed that the below-threshold group had a significantly higher risk (fast pace stride length: OR=6.063, 95% CI=2.195-16.753, p<.001; upper body strength: OR=5.079, 95% CI=1.798-14.346, p=.002) of osteoporosis than the above-threshold group, and this result remained significant even after adjusting for covariates.CONCLUSIONS: The findings of this study suggest that measuring fast-pace stride length and grip strength, which can be easily assessed, may serve as useful tools for identifying osteoporosis risk in elderly women.