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Predictive value of waist-to-hip ratio on cardiovascular risk events
J L Megnien1, N Denarie, M Cocaul
1Centre de Médecine Préventive Cardiovasculaire, INSERM CRI, Hôpital Broussais, Paris, France.
Insights
Central obesity, measured by waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), strongly predicts cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. Higher WHR values indicate increased risk for coronary heart disease, myocardial infarction, and stroke.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Public Health
- Epidemiology
Background:
- Central adipose tissue distribution is a known risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD).
- Identifying reliable markers for CVD risk is crucial for preventative strategies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the clinical utility of waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) in predicting cardiovascular events.
- To assess the association between WHR and various cardiovascular outcomes using established risk models.
Main Methods:
- Utilized data from the Framingham and Prospective Cardiovascular Münster (PROCAM) studies.
- Analyzed data from 552 men and 160 women at risk for CVD, aged 30-74.
- Employed logistic regression models to estimate cardiovascular event probabilities based on WHR.
Main Results:
- Abdominal fatness, indicated by WHR, was a significant predictor of cardiovascular complications.
- Increased WHR quintiles correlated with higher estimated risks for coronary heart disease, myocardial infarction, stroke, and overall CVD.
- Subjects in the highest WHR quintile had over double the risk of a 10-year coronary event compared to those in the lowest quintiles.
Conclusions:
- Waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) is a valuable clinical tool for identifying individuals at high risk of cardiovascular events.
- Abdominal fat deposition, as assessed by WHR, provides strong prognostic information for cardiovascular risk assessment.
Background:
A central distribution of adipose tissue is frequently associated with cardiovascular disease (CVD) and its risk factors.
Methods:
Clinical usefulness of waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) for predicting the risk of cardiovascular events, estimated with models based on data from the Framingham and Prospective Cardiovascular Münster (PROCAM) studies was evaluated.
Subjects:
These were 552 men and 160 women, asymptomatic and at risk for CVD, aged 30-74 y, recruited from an ongoing risk factor screening program conducted at worksites.
Results:
Abdominal fatness was a strong predictor of cardiovascular complications in subjects whose WHR was in the top quintile (> 0.98 for men and > 0.91 for women). The estimated percentage rate of coronary heart disease (CHD, P <0.01) and death (P < 0.01), myocardial infarction (P < 0.01), stroke (P < 0.01), total CVD (P < 0.001) and death (P < 0.01) increased with increasing quintile of WHR in men and women. In the highest WHR, the number of subjects exceeding a 15% risk of developing a coronary event over the next 10 y was more than two-fold greater (odds ratio (OR) 2.60 (confidence intervals (CI) 1.09-6.54) than in the lowest WHR quintiles. Similar six-year myocardial infarction (MI) risks at each quintile of WHR were observed in men in both Framingham and PROCAM models. In the overall population, CHD estimates increased with increasing quintiles of WHR with the Framingham model and an adapted model for estimating probabilities of disease in the French population of the Prevention Cardiovasculaire en Médecine du Travail (PCV-METRA) group.
Conclusion:
Abdominal deposition of fat assessed by WHR may be of strong clinical value for predicting high risk of cardiovascular events.