Abstract
Background: The standard measure for classifying obesity, the body mass index (BMI) has been found to be deficient in some populations, Sub-Saharan Africans inclusive. Until recently, waist-to-height ratio (WHtR) was considered an improvement in this regard. Abdominal height (AH) measured with a novel appliance was recently found to be a superior cardiac anthropometric measure in our population; hence, there is a need to correlate it mathematically with the older indices. Objective: To determine a mathematical formula that permits computation of AH from BMI and WHtR. Methodology: A total of 200 randomly selected consenting young adult Nigerians (100 males and 100 females) between the ages 16 and 44 years who were undergoing preadmission medical examinations in a higher educational institution participated in this study. Height and weight were measured to determine BMI; waist and hip circumferences were measured and waist-to-hip ratio and WHtR computed. Results: Correlations between two anthropometric indices, BMI, and WHtR with AH were determined, and linear relationships were established using regression analysis to compute the AH using BMI and WHtR (P 32 cm and 30 cm by BMI and WHtR classifications, respectively. Conclusion: Where there is no abdominometer to measure AH, it is possible from BMI and WHtR to determine AH; which has been shown to predict cardiometabolic diseases better in our population.
Published Version
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