1261-PUB: Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Is an Independent Predictor of Hand Grip Strength in Patients with Established Cardiovascular Disease

Low hand grips strength (HGS), a validated parameter for poor skeletal muscular function, has been shown to be a predictor for mortality and cardiovascular events. Patients with established cardiovascular disease are at an increased risk of death and cardiovascular events, especially those who also have type 2 diabetes (T2DM). Factors predicting HGS in this important population are unclear and are therefore addressed in the present study. We investigated a high-risk cohort of 874 patients with established cardiovascular disease, including 670 patients with angiographically verified coronary artery disease and 204 patients with sonographically verified peripheral artery disease. From our patients, 274 (31.4%) had T2DM according to ADA criteria. In analysis of covariance, the presence of T2DM significantly predicted higher HGS (F 8.8; p=0.003); further predictors of higher HGS were younger age (F=206.8; p