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Updated: Aug 20, 2025

Assessment of Child Anthropometry in a Large Epidemiologic Study
Published on: February 2, 2017
Relation between obesity-related comorbidities and kidney function estimation in children
Mark J C M van Dam1, Hans Pottel2, Anita C E Vreugdenhil3
1Centre for Overweight Adolescent and Children's Healthcare (COACH), Department of Pediatrics, School of Nutrition and Translational Research in Metabolism (NUTRIM), Maastricht University Medical Centre +, Maastricht, The Netherlands. mark.van.dam@mumc.nl.
Childhood obesity increases chronic kidney disease risk. This study found correlations between obesity comorbidities and kidney function estimates, but results varied by equation. Rescaled serum creatinine (SCr/Q) may offer an alternative biomarker.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Nephrology
- Obesity Medicine
- Biomarker Discovery
Background:
- Childhood obesity is a growing pandemic with potential long-term health consequences.
- Increased risk of chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a concern for obese children.
- Existing estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) equations may introduce bias when assessing kidney function in obese children.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze correlations between obesity-related comorbidities and various eGFR equations in children.
- To investigate rescaled serum creatinine (SCr/Q) as a potential alternative biomarker for kidney function in this population.
Main Methods:
- Cross-sectional cohort study of 600 children with overweight/obesity (mean age 12.2 years).
- Comprehensive assessment including anthropometry, blood pressure, labs, body composition, and polysomnography.
- Comparison of multiple creatinine-based eGFR equations and evaluation of SCr/Q (rescaled for age/sex or height).
Main Results:
- SCr/Q and most eGFR estimations showed significant correlations with obesity indicators (waist-to-hip ratio, fat mass) and metabolic markers (insulin resistance, lipids, liver enzymes, uric acid).
- Correlations varied significantly across different eGFR equations, indicating mathematical form dependency.
- The consistency of correlations was not universal across all tested equations.
Conclusions:
- Correlations between obesity comorbidities and creatinine-based eGFR in children are equation-dependent.
- Rescaled serum creatinine (SCr/Q) shows promise as an alternative biomarker for assessing kidney function in overweight/obese children.
- Further research is needed to validate SCr/Q as a reliable kidney function biomarker in pediatric obesity.
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