Neck Circumference as an Anthropometric Measure of Obesity
Abstract
Background: Obesity is defined as an unhealthy
excess of body fat that increases the risk of morbidity and
premature mortality. It has become the second leading and a
preventable cause of death worldwide, with increasing rates
in adults, especially in women and children. Obesity
increases the likelihood of various diseases,
particularly heart disease, type 2 diabetes, obstructive sleep
apnea, certain types of cancer, osteoarthritis and depression
and is a well-recognized risk factor for the development of
insulin resistance and metabolic syndrome. Neck
circumference is a marker of the upper body subcutaneous
adipose tissue distribution which independently contributes
to cardio metabolic risk. It is a better potential screening tool
to measure the degree of adiposity and the cardiovascular
risk in obesity. Aim: To study the role of Neck
Circumference as an anthropometric measure of obesity.
Materials and Methods: A cross sectional study was
conducted in 127 obese subjects of the age group above
30 years with a BMI ≥ 25. Anthropometric measurements,
the measures of central obesity and the neck circumference
were measured. Pearson’s correlation was the test of
significance done to analyze the quantitative data.
Results: There was a positive correlation of neck
circumference, BMI and measures of central obesity. The
neck circumference of the obese subjects was significantly
higher than that in the non – obese subjects (P ˂ 0.0001).
Conclusion: The findings indicate that neck circumference
can be used as a potential and reliable tool to identify
overweight and obesity.
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