FREQUENCY OF DYSLIPIDEMIA IN OBESE VERSUS NON - OBESE IN RELATION TO BODY MASS INDEX (BMI), WAIST HIP RATIO (WHR) AND WAIST CIRCUMFERENCE (WC)

This comparative cross-sectional study was conducted at Liaquat University Hospital, Hyderabad, from March 2008 to August 2008. The two groups and total 200 subjects (100 in each group) attending medical out patient department were selected and their age, sex, BMI, WHR, WC and lipids profile were measured. Obese group included those who had high BMI (> 30), WHR (>1.0 for males and > 0.85 for females), and WC (>102 cm for males and >88 cm for females) and vice versa. The distribution of the lipid levels and the frequency of dyslipidemia were noted for both the groups. Obese subjects showed significant (p≤0.05) dyslipidemia. Thirty seven percent subjects had total cholesterol >200 mg/dl, 46% had high-density lipoproteins (HDL) cholesterol of 130 mg/dl and 51% had triglycerides (TG) >150 mg/dl, while non-obese group also showed significant dyslipidemia. On comparing the lipid profile between these two groups, the mean value of total cholesterol was not different significantly (P>0.05) while the mean values of total HDL cholesterol, total LDL cholesterol and TG in obese group were different significantly (P<0.05) between the groups. It may be concluded that dyslipidemia is strongly associated with obesity but presence of dyslipidemia in non-obese group emphasizes the need for routine health screening for preventive measure.