Background: Insulin plays a determinant role in the individual metabolic profile. Obesity, the most common cause of insulin resistance (IR), can be diagnosed by body mass index (BMI). Waist circumference (WC), specifically, measures accumulation of abdominal fat. The cardiovascular risk of an individual is strongly related to a combination of abdominal obesity with hypertriglyceridemia or hypertriglyceridemic waist (HTW).
Aim: To assess the metabolic profile of cardiovascular risk and RI according to BMI, WC and HTW in adult patients.
Material and methods: Weight, height, BMI, blood pressure (BP), WC, HTW, blood glucose, total cholesterol, HDL cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, triglycerides and insulin were assessed and IR calculated by the homeostasis model assessment (HOMA) in 63 females aged 46+/-11 years and 12 males aged 4 7+/- 10 years.
Results: Differences in weight, WC, BP, lipids, glucose, insulin and HOMA, were observed as BMI increased. When patients were grouped according to WC, there were significant differences only in systolic pressure, triglycerides, insulin and HOMA. Individuals with HTW had a more adverse metabolic profile than those without HTW or with only high WC. A multiple regression equation determined that body mass index, total cholesterol and diastolic blood pressure were independent predictors of insulin resistance.
Conclusions: Patients with HTW displayed an unfavorable cardiac risk profile.