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Clinical and metabolic characteristics of an obese, Dominican, pediatric population

Nicole Sherry1, Abeer Hassoun, Sharon E Oberfield

  • 1Children's Hospital of New York Presbyterian, New York, NY 10032, USA.

Journal of Pediatric Endocrinology & Metabolism : JPEM
|February 8, 2006
PubMed

Insights

Obese Black and Latino children show high rates of metabolic issues. Dominican youth had fewer metabolic syndrome and glucose problems than other Latino groups, suggesting varied risks by origin.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Endocrinology
  • Metabolic Health
  • Health Disparities

Background:

  • Obesity is prevalent in Black and Latino children.
  • Race may influence obesity-related co-morbidities.
  • Limited data exists on metabolic profiles of specific Latino subgroups.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate clinical and metabolic characteristics of obese pediatric patients of Dominican ancestry.
  • To compare metabolic abnormalities in this group to other Latino pediatric populations.
  • To investigate potential differences in obesity-related co-morbidities based on Latino subgroup.

Main Methods:

  • Retrospective analysis of 428 obese children and adolescents (ages 2-20).
  • Detailed metabolic analysis of 193 patients.
  • Assessment of clinical data including BMI z-score, blood pressure, lipids, glucose, and metabolic syndrome.

Main Results:

  • High prevalence of obesity (mean BMI z-score 2.63).
  • Common abnormalities included low HDL (47%), elevated systolic blood pressure (19%), and total cholesterol (18%).
  • Metabolic syndrome (14%) and glucose regulation issues were less frequent than in Mexican and Puerto Rican pediatric Latino populations.

Conclusions:

  • Obese pediatric patients of Dominican ancestry exhibit distinct metabolic profiles.
  • Risk for metabolic syndrome and glucose dysregulation may vary among Latino subgroups.
  • Further research is needed to understand ethnic variations in obesity-related co-morbidities.

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