Association Between Skeletal Muscle Mass and Cardiovascular Risk Factors in Occupational Sedentary Population: A Cross-sectional Study

Abstract

Objective The aims of this study were to determine the association of skeletal muscle mass with three cardiovascular risk factors and explore a simple and clinically feasible indicator for identifying high-risk groups of cardiovascular diseases in occupational sedentary population. Methods We recruited 7316 occupational sedentary participants older than 18 years from the Health Management Center of Tianjin Union Medical Center. Age-adjusted logistic regression was used to analyze the association between skeletal muscle mass index (SMI) and cardiovascular risk factors. Results There were significant positive associations between SMI, especially arm SMI, and cardiovascular risk factors in both male and female subjects (odds ratio, 1.28 to 5.02; P < 0.001). Conclusions Our findings suggest that measurements of skeletal muscle mass, particularly in the arms, may help identify individuals at high risk for cardiovascular disease in an occupationally sedentary population.