Waist Circumference Cutoff Points for Central Obesity in the Korean Elderly Population

The aim is to determine the appropriate cutoff values of waist circumference (WC) for an increased risk of the metabolic syndrome in the Korean elderly population. We analyzed the WC cutoff values of four groups divided according to sex and age with a total of 2,224 elderly participants aged 65 years old and above from the Fourth Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey using the receiver operating characteristic curve and multiple logistic regression. The WC cutoff values associated with an increased risk of metabolic syndrome were 89.6 cm for men and 90.5 cm for women for those who were 65 to 74 years old, and 89.9 cm for men and 87.9 cm for women for those who were 75 years old or older. WC cutoff points for estimating metabolic risk are similar in elderly men and women. Age-specific optimal WC cutoff points should be considered especially for elderly women in screening for metabolic syndrome.