Abstract P378: Association Between Height-to-Waist Ratio and Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors in US Adolescents
Background: Although height-to-waist (HtW) ratio is strongly linked to cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality in adults, the association between HtW and CVD risk factors in children and adolescents remain less unexplored. The purpose of this study was to examine the association between HtW and CVD risk factors in US adolescents (N = 9493), aged 12 to 17 years, from the NHANES (1999-2006). Methods: Waist circumference, body weight, height were assessed with standardized protocols for body composition measurement. High blood pressure (BP) was defined as a value at or above the 90 th percentile for age, sex, and height. Elevated fasting glucose level was defined using the American Diabetes Association guideline of 110 mg/dL or higher. Elevated total cholesterol (TC) level was classified as TC greater than 200 mg/dL. The CVD risk (yes/no) was defined as one or more of these 3 conditions (high BP, elevated glucose, high cholesterol levels). Multivariable logistic regression was used to investigate the association between HtW and CVD risk after adjustment for age, sex, race, physical activity, and dietary habits. We also used the area under a receiver operating characteristic (ROC curve) and a nadir point [(shortest distance from the ROC curve to the perfection (sensitivity = 100% and specificity = 100%)] to define the lowest CVD risk for HtW in boys and girls, respectively. Results: HtW was a strong risk factor for CVD risk in both boys and girls (All P<0.001). There was a strong inverse association between HtW and CVD risk in both boys and girls (All P<0.001), respectively. Minima on the receiver operating characteristics curves for CVD risk in boys and girls were 2.17 and 2.03, respectively. The HtW cutoff points of 2.17 (sensitivity = 67%; specificity = 59%; minimum ROC distance = 0.51) and 2.03 (sensitivity = 64%; specificity = 55%; minimum ROC distance = 0.57) in boys and girls were associated with the lowest CVD risk, respectively. Conclusions: Height-to-waist ratio was strong risk factor for CVD in boys and girls.