For non-hypertensive elderly subjects, serum sodium concentration within the normal range is positively associated with handgrip strength and inversely associated with CD34-positive cells, thus partly indicating the degree of age-related endothelium injury. Serum sodium concentration was positively associated with handgrip strength in non-hypertensive subjects, but not for hypertensive subjects (β = 0.01 p = 0.878), while it was inversely associated with circulating CD34-positive cell levels in non-hypertensive subjects but not for hypertensive subjects (r = − 0.07 p = 0.454). Subjects were stratified by hypertension status because hypertension should act as a strong confounding factor for the analyses performed in this study. We conducted a cross-sectional study of 246 elderly Japanese men aged 60–69 years. Since endothelial injury stimulates endothelial repair by enhancing CD34-positive cell production, the level of serum sodium may be inversely associated with that of circulating CD34-positive cells, thus indicating the degree of age-related endothelial injury.

Serum sodium concentration within the normal range could act as an indicator of age-related changes such as decrease in muscle strength and impairment of capillary function.

Serum sodium normal range