Determining correlations between hand grip strength and anthropometric measurements in preschool children.

Abstract

PurposeWe aimed to assess normal values of hand grip strength in preschool children and to determine their correlations with anthropometric measurements.MethodsAccording to (Indira and Rajeswari, 2015) a pilot study was performed before the current study in order to confirm the variation in values of grip strength in age ranged from 3-6 years old. Therefore, ten children from each age group was assigned and it showed a significant changes in the measurements of grip strength corresponding to the age. Thus, it was important to assign them to three groups based on age so the first group from 3 to 4 years old, the second group from 4 to 5 years old, the third group from 5 to 6 years old.ResultsThe study included 636 normal preschool-age children. Grip strengths with the dominant hand were 26.87 ± 6.77 kPa, 29.78 ± 8.43 kPa, and 38.04 ± 8.55 kPa in the 3–4, 4–5, and 5–6 years age groups, respectively. With the non-dominant hand, grip strengths were 25.03 ± 7.19 kPa, 28.13 ± 8.43 kPa, and 33.74 ± 8.14 kPa, respectively. In the 3–4 years group, there were negative significant correlations between grip strength of the dominant hand and forearm circumference (FC) or hand circumference (HC). However, we found a positive non-significant correlation with hand length (HL). Grip strength of the non-dominant hand showed a negative significant correlation with FC, a positive non-significant correlation with HC, and a positive significant correlation with HL. Grip strength of both dominant and non-dominant hands in the 4–5 years group showed moderately positive significant correlations with all anthropometric measurements. Grip strength of both dominant and non-dominant hands in the 5–6 years group showed weak positive significant correlations with FC and moderate positive significant correlations with HC and HL.ConclusionThis study established normal values of grip strength and demonstrated positive significant correlations between grip strength and FC, HC, and HL with increasing age in preschool children.