<p>Diagnostic Accuracy of Body Mass Index (BMI) When Diagnosing Obesity in a Saudi Adult Population in a Primary Care Setting, Cross Sectional, Retrospective Study</p>

Abstract

Background Obesity is a risk factor that leads to many chronic diseases and, unfortunately, its prevalence in Saudi Arabia is on the rise. To successfully manage obesity and its complications, patient must be accurately diagnosed. This study aims to investigate the diagnostic accuracy of body mass index (BMI) when diagnosing obesity within the Saudi population using body fat percentage (BF%) as the gold standard. Materials and Methods This is a cross-sectional study that includes a calculated sample size of 942 subjects. Subjects were recruited from family medicine clinics that were linked to King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre (KFSH&RC) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia from January 2005 to March 2016. BF% was estimated using DEXA scan. The diagnostic accuracy of BMI was assessed by using the WHO and the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists and American College of Endocrinology (AACE/ACE) reference standard for obesity of BF% >25% in men and >35% for women. Results Findings indicate, out of the study population, 29% of men and 53% of women are obese using BMI-defined obesity cut-off point 30 kg/m 2 . The prevalence of obesity was 83.9% and 97.3% in men and women, respectively, using BF%-defined obesity, which corresponds to BMI cut-off of 24 kg/m 2 . Even when considering the highest acceptable BF% based on the mean age of our participants (33% for men and 43% for women), the BMI cut-off to diagnose obesity should not exceed 27 kg/m 2 among men and women in Saudi Arabia. Conclusion The accuracy of BMI 30 kg/m 2 to diagnose obesity among the Saudi population is limited. We have to lower the BMI cut-off point to improve its sensitivity as a screening tool for obesity. Our study suggests that the BMI cut-off point among Saudis and possibly the Arab population should not exceed 27 kg/m 2 for both sexes.

Optimal BMI cutoff points in obesity screening for Chinese college students

“…Compared with the BF%-defined obesity (83.9% in men and 97.3% in women), the BMI cutoff point of 30 kg/m 2 classified only 29% of men and 53% of women as obesity. The BMI sensitivity reached a comparable level to the BF% classification as the BMI cutoff points were reduced to 24 kg/m 2 (Alammar et al, 2020). It is reasonable to adopt a more stringent standard with lower BMI cutoff points for the concerns with the low BMI sensitivity in obesity screening (Javed et al, 2015).…”

Body Mass Index as a Measure of Obesity and Cut-Off for Surgical Eligibility

“…Thirty-four sources were included in this report. Thirteen sources reported study findings concerning the validity and/or accuracy of BMI as a measure of obesity [14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26] and are summarized in Table 2; 13 sources reported findings regarding the use of BMI as a surgical cut-off and are summarized in Table 3; [27][28][29][30][31][32][33][34][35][36][37][38][39] 5 reported ethical issues related to BMI [40][41][42][43][44] and are summarized in Table 4; and 3 guidelines were identified describing recommendations related to the use of BMI as a threshold or cut-off in determining eligibility for surgery (summarized in Table 5). [45][46][47] With regard to validity and/or accuracy, most of the included studies either compared BMI to other measures of obesity and/or adiposity, or investigated the effects of BMI cut-offs for surgical eligibility on surgical outcomes.…”

Relación entre fibromialgia y sarcopenia; el papel del abordaje nutricional

“…Esto se observó en el estudio de referencia, y también se dio la situación inversa, es decir, sobre un peso total excedido, un adecuado contenido corporal de grasa. Esta última situación se puede observar en personas con alta masa muscular, por ejemplo personas que realizan actividad física 22 .…”

“…Los cambios en la composición corporal a lo largo de los años han sido muy bien estudiados y documentados en la literatura. Los altos niveles de adiposidad están asociados a anormalidades en el metabolismo de la glucosa y enfermedades cardiovasculares 17,22 . La adiposidad y la masa muscular tienen asociaciones opuestas en referencia al metabolismo de la glucosa, el riesgo cardiovascular e impacto en las actividades de la vida diaria 17,26 .…”