Relationship between Physical Activity, Hand Grip Strength, and Malnutrition Status in Neurodegenerative Diseases: A Case-Control Study

Objective: To determine the relationship between physical activity level, hand grip asymmetry, and nutritional status in geriatric individuals with and without neurodegenerative diseases. Methods: This research was conducted in a nursing home in Istanbul between November 2023 and March 2024. The study included geriatric individuals aged 65 years and older with neurodegenerative diseases as the study group and age-matched controls with no evidence of neurodegeneration. Data collection involved sociodemographic surveys, anthropometric measurements, hand grip strength measurements, International Physical Activity Questionnaire and Mini Nutritional Assessment tests. Results: The mean age of study group was 76.7±7.3 and 74.3±7.5 years in control group. The study group had a higher malnutrition risk (59.3%) compared to controls, who showed predominantly normal nutritional status (66.7%, p=0.031). Hand grip strength measurements revealed greater asymmetry in the study group (74.1% vs. 33.3% with no asymmetry, p=0.003), along with significantly lower mean hand grip strength values on the right (13.3±6.4 vs. 22.1±7.6) and left hand (12.4±6.3 vs. 21.0±7.2, both p