Higher C-Reactive Protein and Soluble Tumor Necrosis Factor Receptor Levels Are Associated With Poor Physical Function and Disability: A Cross-Sectional Analysis of a Cohort of Late Middle-Aged African Americans

Background This cohort of “late middle-aged” African Americans has an excess of disability. We aimed to determine associations of circulating cytokine receptors (sTNFR1, sTNFR2, and sIL-6R) and C-reactive protein (CRP) with disability, physical function, and body composition. Methods Stratified sampling of two socioeconomically diverse strata of St Louis, Missouri, occurred in 2000–2001. Inclusion criteria were self-reported black or African American race, born 1936–1950 inclusive, and Mini-Mental State Examination score of 16 or greater. In-home evaluations of handgrip strength, lean body mass percentage (LBM%), physical performance, upper and lower body functional limitations (UBFLs and LBFLs), and basic and instrumental activities of daily living (BADLs and IADLs) were collected. Of the 998 participants, 368 had blood sampled at baseline. Serum was stored and assayed in 2006. Results Absolute risks were LBFLs of 2 or more, 46%; UBFLs of 1 or more, 23.5%; BADLs of 2 or more, 20.6%; and IADLs of 2 or more, 22.5%. Independent of age, sex, and underlying comorbid conditions, higher CRP and sTNFR were associated with poorer physical performance (β = −1.462, p < .001 and β = −0.618, p = .003), UBFLs (odds ratio [OR] 2.26, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.1–4.64 and OR 1.39, 95% CI 0.96–2.02), LBFLs (OR 2.30, 95% CI 1.19–4.45 and OR 1.91, 95% CI 1.26–2.91), BADLs (OR 2.79, 95% CI 1.03–5.96 and OR 1.66, 95% CI 1.11–2.46), and IADLs (OR 2.13, 95% CI 1.03–4.41 and OR 1.43, 95% CI 0.99–2.08). Higher CRP (β = −3.251, p