Anthropometric, Bioelectric, and Visceral Fat Indices to Predict Hypertension in Rural Rohtak, Haryana

Hypertension, which is responsible for many comorbidities like stroke and chronic heart disease, has a prevalence of 29.8% in India. They are many obesity indices; bioelectric and visceral fat indices are seen to be associated with hypertension. The region-specific cutoffs of these indices are important to make amenable policy decisions for the control of noncommunicable diseases. This study aimed to examine the various anthropometric, bioelectric, and visceral fat indicators as predictors of hypertension in adults of rural Rohtak, Haryana.

An observational cross-sectional study was conducted among 800 adults (18-60 years), who were permanent residents of Chiri Block. Sociodemographic, socioeconomic, dietary, and morbidity data were collected, and measurements for various anthropometric and fat indices were taken using standardized methods. Receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) analysis was used to calculate the area under the curve (95% confidence interval) for validity and to estimate the optimal cutoff values of anthropometric and other indices.

The overall prevalence of obesity (WHO Asia Pacific criteria) was 40.60% (39.60% males, 41.30% females), whereas the prevalence of hypertension (AHA 2017) was 30.90% (34.6% males, 21.4% females). Waist circumference (WC) (0.736), visceral fat level (VFL) (0.723), and waist height ratio (WHtR) (0.717) had the highest area under curve values. Body mass index (BMI) had the highest sensitivity (69.9%), whereas body fat percentage (BFP) had the highest specificity (89.9%).

WC and WHtR have proven to be superior indicators than BMI. VFL and BFP are emerging indicators, and further exploration needs to be done toward the utilization of these indices directly at the community level for screening purposes.