Could the New Body Shape Index Predict the New Onset of Diabetes Mellitus in the Chinese Population?

Abstract

BackgroundAnthropometric measures could predict the new onset of diabetes mellitus (DM). Recently, a new anthropometric measure (a body shape index, ABSI) was developed, and ABSI could predict premature mortality, even better than WC and BMI. The main aims of the study were to assess the DM predictive power of ABSI based on the follow-up data over 15 years collected from a general Chinese population.Methods and FindingsThe data were collected in 1992 and then again in 2007 from the same group of 711 individuals. Because 24 of them were diagnosed with DM in 1992, our analysis was eventually based on the usable data collected from the remaining 687 individuals (male: 58.1%). ABSI was defined as WC/(BMI2/3height1/2), expressing WC and height in m. After adjusting for confounders, increasing the population ABSI by one standard deviation would result in an increased HR of 41% (95%CI: 12%–77%), compared to 73% (95%CI: 37%–118%) for BMI and 96% (95%CI: 53%–150%) for WC. WC had the best discriminatory power for DM (AROC: 0.701, 95%CI: 0.641–0.760), followed by BMI (AROC: 0.668, 95%CI: 0.601–0.734) and ABSI (AROC: 0.647, 95%CI: 0.581–0.713).ConclusionsABSI could predict the new onset of DM in the Chinese population independently. Since the confidence intervals for the HR coefficients and AROCs overlapped, the predictive ability of ABSI for DM was not better than WC and BMI. The three measures had similar predictive abilities for DM. Further studies about ethnic specificities of ABSI are needed and warranted.

Effectiveness of A Body Shape Index (ABSI) in predicting chronic diseases and mortality: a systematic review and meta‐analysis

“…This result is consistent with the finding that combination of BMI and WC performed better in explaining non‐abdominal, abdominal subcutaneous and visceral fat than BMI or WC alone . Since then, interest in the effectiveness of this new index has risen across countries . However, subsequent research revealed conflicting results regarding the predictability of ABSI for chronic diseases and mortality .…”

“A Body Shape Index” in Middle-Age and Older Indonesian Population: Scaling Exponents and Association with Incident Hypertension

“…A recent study showed that ABSI, WC and BMI had similar ability to predict diabetes onset [24]. There is also conflicting data on whether anthropometric indicators of abdominal obesity are useful in revealing hypertension risk, given the information on BMI [4], [8]–[10], [24]. In the present study, both WC and BMI were more strongly associated with the development of hypertension.…”

“…They highlighted not only the crudeness of the BMI but also the importance of abdominal obesity. A recent study showed that ABSI, WC and BMI had similar ability to predict diabetes onset [24]. There is also conflicting data on whether anthropometric indicators of abdominal obesity are useful in revealing hypertension risk, given the information on BMI [4], [8]–[10], [24].…”

An Anthropometric Risk Index Based on Combining Height, Weight, Waist, and Hip Measurements

“…The approach used to compute ARI here for hazard of all-cause mortality could also be extended to derive risk indices customized for specific causes of death and morbidity outcomes such as heart disease, stroke, or diabetes, which could facilitate individualized cost-benefit consideration in deciding what medical interventions to undertake [69–71]. One recent study found that anthropometric indices (ABSI and WC/ H ratio) were correlated with Framingham and SCORE 10-year cardiovascular risk estimates in a nationally representative Turkish sample [72], while another study found anthropometry-based indices (specifically ABSI) to predict cardiovascular disease in middle-aged and elderly Dutch adults as well as a risk model that included laboratory measurements [73], highlighting the potential for utilization of a combination of several readily obtained body measurements for cardiometabolic risk assessment.…”