Waist-to-height ratio and body fat percentage as risk factors for ischemic cardiovascular disease: a prospective...

Area of Science:

• Cardiology
• Public Health
• Obesity Research

Background:

• The independent contribution of waist-to-height ratio (WHtR) and body fat percentage (BF%) to ischemic cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk is not fully understood.
• Central obesity, often indicated by WHtR, is a growing concern in cardiovascular health.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the independent associations of WHtR and BF% with the risk of ischemic CVD.
• To determine the relative importance of WHtR versus BF% in predicting ischemic CVD, myocardial infarction (MI), and ischemic stroke (IS).

Main Methods:

• A prospective cohort study utilizing data from the UK Biobank.
• Cox proportional hazards models were employed to analyze associations between WHtR, BF%, and ischemic CVD events.
• Analyses included overall and sex-specific models, with mutual adjustment for WHtR and BF%.

Main Results:

• WHtR showed a linear association with ischemic CVD, MI, and IS, independent of BF%.
• The association between WHtR and MI was stronger in females.
• The predictive power of BF% for these outcomes was significantly attenuated when adjusted for WHtR.

Conclusions:

• WHtR is a significant independent predictor of ischemic CVD, MI, and IS in both sexes.
• Central obesity, as measured by WHtR, plays a more critical role in ischemic CVD risk than overall body fat percentage.
• BF% associations with CVD are largely explained by their correlation with WHtR, suggesting WHtR is a superior marker for central obesity-related cardiovascular risk.