Relationship Between Grip Strength and Intraoperative Hemodynamic Parameters in Geriatric Patients Undergoing Spinal Anesthesia

One of the most common intraoperative complications following spinal anesthesia is hypotension, which can occur in 16-33% of patients. In non-cardiac surgeries, there is a significant increase in postoperative major cardiac and cerebrovascular events within 30 days, parallel to the decrease in intraoperative mean arterial pressure within hypotensive limits. While there are different threshold values related to mean arterial pressure that can lead to organ damage in the literature, high-quality studies have found this value to be approximately 65 mmHg. However, in elderly patient groups, hypertension is frequently seen due to age-related arterial degeneration, which raises the perfusion thresholds of vital organs. In this context, rather than using a fixed threshold value, the variation of mean arterial pressure may provide a healthier perspective.

The risk of hypotension increases with physiological changes in the elderly, and the more widespread use of spinal anesthesia compared to general anesthesia in older adults underscores the need for better identification of risk factors.

Hand grip strength is a frequently used muscle strength measurement method in sports medicine and geriatric patient groups. It is usually measured in kg or lb with the help of a dynamometer. It provides valuable information in both rehabilitation studies and sarcopenia evaluation. Sarcopenia, or muscle wasting, is associated with frailty in geriatric patients and is one of the important indicators of cardiovascular health. For this reason, the deterioration of cardiovascular health with aging and the increase in the risk of hypotension, one of the side effects of anesthesia, can be predicted by muscle strength evaluation. The aim of our study is to examine whether muscle strength assessment is associated with intraoperative hypotension.