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Waist‐to‐height ratio, body mass index and waist circumference for screening paediatric cardio‐metabolic risk factors: a meta‐analysis
Author(s) -
Lo K.,
Wong M.,
Khalechelvam P.,
Tam W.
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
obesity reviews
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.845
H-Index - 162
eISSN - 1467-789X
pISSN - 1467-7881
DOI - 10.1111/obr.12456
Subject(s) - waist , waist to height ratio , medicine , body mass index , metabolic syndrome , circumference , dyslipidemia , meta analysis , receiver operating characteristic , body adiposity index , body volume index , obesity , classification of obesity , fat mass , mathematics , geometry
Summary Waist‐to‐height ratio (WHtR) is superior to body mass index and waist circumference for measuring adult cardio‐metabolic risk factors. However, there is no meta‐analysis to evaluate its discriminatory power in children and adolescents. A meta‐analysis was conducted using multiple databases, including Embase and Medline. Studies were included that utilized receiver‐operating characteristics curve analysis and published area under the receiver‐operating characteristics curves (AUC) for adiposity indicators with hyperglycaemia, elevated blood pressure, dyslipidemia, metabolic syndrome and other cardio‐metabolic outcomes. Thirty‐four studies met the inclusion criteria. AUC values were extracted and pooled using a random‐effects model and were weighted using the inverse variance method. The mean AUC values for each index were greater than 0.6 for most outcomes including hypertension. The values were the highest when screening for metabolic syndrome (AUC > 0.8). WHtR did not have significantly better screening power than other two indexes in most outcomes, except for elevated triglycerides when compared with body mass index and high metabolic risk score when compared with waist circumference. Although not being superior in discriminatory power, WHtR is convenient in terms of measurement and interpretation, which is advantageous in practice and allows for the quick identification of children with cardio‐metabolic risk factors at an early age.