Skeletal Muscle Health, Physical Performance, and Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms in Older Adults: The Study of Muscle, Mobility, and Aging

Scott R Bauer; Candace Parker-Autry; Kaiwei Lu; Steven R Cummings; Russell T Hepple; Rebecca Scherzer; Kenneth Covinsky; Peggy M Cawthon

doi:10.1093/gerona/glad218

Skeletal Muscle Health, Physical Performance, and Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms in Older Adults: The Study of Muscle, Mobility, and Aging

J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. 2024 Jun 1;79(6):glad218. doi: 10.1093/gerona/glad218.

Authors

Scott R Bauer^{1

2}, Candace Parker-Autry³, Kaiwei Lu³, Steven R Cummings^{4

5}, Russell T Hepple⁶, Rebecca Scherzer¹, Kenneth Covinsky^{1

7}, Peggy M Cawthon^{4

5}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Medicine, University of California and the San Francisco Veterans Affairs Medical Center, San Francisco, California, USA.
² Department of Urology, University of California, San Francisco, California, USA.
³ Department of Urology, Section on Female Pelvic Health, Wake Forest Baptist Health, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USA.
⁴ San Francisco Coordinating Center, California Pacific Medical Center Research Institute, San Francisco, California, USA.
⁵ Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California, San Francisco, California, USA.
⁶ Department of Physical Therapy, College of Public Health and Health Professions, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA.
⁷ Division of Geriatrics, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, California, USA.

PMID: 37694941
PMCID: PMC11083634 (available on 2024-09-11)
DOI: 10.1093/gerona/glad218

Abstract

Background: Lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) and mobility limitations are bidirectionally associated among older adults, but the role of skeletal muscle remains unknown. We evaluated cross-sectional associations of muscle health and physical performance with LUTS.

Methods: We used data from 377 women and 264 men aged >70 years in the Study of Muscle, Mobility and Aging (SOMMA). LUTS and urinary bother were assessed using the LURN Symptom Index-10 (SI-10; higher = worse symptoms). Muscle mass and volume were assessed using D3-creatine dilution (D3Cr) and magnetic resonance imaging. Grip strength and peak leg power assessed upper/lower extremity physical performance. 400-m walk, Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB), and Four Square Step Test (FSST) assessed global physical performance. Mobility Assessment Tool-short form (MAT-sf) assessed self-reported mobility. We calculated Spearman correlation coefficients adjusted for age, body mass index, multimorbidity, and polypharmacy, chi-square tests, and Fisher's Z-test to compare correlations.

Results: Among women, LURN SI-10 total scores were inversely correlated with FSST (rs = 0.11, p = .045), grip strength (rs = -0.15, p = .006), and MAT-sf (rs = -0.18, p = .001), but not other muscle and physical performance measures in multivariable models. LURN SI-10 was not associated with any of these measures among men. Forty-four percent of women in the lowest tertile of 400-m walk speed versus 24% in the highest tertile reported they were at least "somewhat bothered" by urinary symptoms (p < .001), whereas differences among men were not significant.

Conclusions: Balance and grip strength were associated with LUTS severity in older women but not men. Associations with other muscle and physical performance measures varied by LUTS subtype but remained strongest among women.

Keywords: Mobility limitation; Prostatic diseases; Sarcopenia; Urinary bladder diseases; Urinary incontinence.

Publication types

Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
Research Support, N.I.H., Intramural

MeSH terms

Aged
Aged, 80 and over
Aging* / physiology
Cross-Sectional Studies
Female
Hand Strength / physiology
Humans
Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms* / physiopathology
Male
Mobility Limitation*
Muscle Strength / physiology
Muscle, Skeletal* / physiopathology
Physical Functional Performance*

Abstract

Publication types

MeSH terms

Grants and funding