Obesity in adult Nigerians: a study of its prevalence and common primary co-morbidities in a semi-urban Mission General Hospital in South-Eastern Nigeria.

Abstract

Background: Obesity is socially and culturally acceptable in Nigeria and therefore not usually recognized as a medical problem. This study is aimed at determining the prevalence of obesity using body mass index(BMI) criterion and its common primary comorbidities among adult Nigerians attending a semiurban Mission General Hospital in Imo state, South-Eastern, Nigeria. Methods: A descriptive study using primary data collection technique was carried out from October 2007 to December 2008. A total of 9296 consecutive new adult patients aged 18-88 years were screened for obesity using BMI criterion and 684 patients who had 2 BMI=30 kg/m met the inclusion criteria. The data collected included age, sex, marital status, education, occupation, weight(kilogram), height(meters), and blood pressure; fasting blood sugar and fasting lipid profile. Obese patients' perception of their obese condition and knowledge of lifestyle modification were also assessed. Results: Six hundred and eighty-four(7.4%) out of a total of 9296 patients screened for obesity were obese. Hypertension(18.4%) was the commonest primary comorbidity, others include high triglyceridaemia(9.2%), high total cholesterol(8.2%), high LDLcholesterol(6.0%) and diabetes mellitus(3.4%). One hundred and one(14.8%) obese patients were aware of their obese condition and majority, 72(71.3%) of them were informed of their obese condition by healthcare professionals. Forty seven(46.5%) of those who were aware of their obese condition had knowledge of lifestyle modification. However, majority(72.3%) of those who had knowledge of lifestyle modification demonstrated low knowledge level of lifestyle modification. Conclusion:This study has shown the existence of obesity and its common primary co-morbidities among the study population. Anthropometric determination of obesity and screening for its common primary co-

Magnitude of Pre-Diabetes among Adult Nigerians with Essential Hypertension in a Primary Care Clinic of a Tertiary Hospital in South-Eastern, Nigeria

“…The social classification of patients was based on five points occupational scale used by Abramson. [25] However, this was re-classified into lower, middle and upper occupational classes to suit Nigerian environment. Class I and II belong to upper class, class III belongs to middle class while class IV and V belong to lower class.…”

Prevalence and Family Biosocial Predictors of Abdominal Obesity among Adult Nigerian Africans in a Resource Constrained Setting of a Rural Hospital in Eastern Nigeria

“…[19] Blood pressure readings were based on the Joint National Committee 7 Report on Prevention, Detection, Evaluation and Treatment of High Blood Pressure classification and guidelines. [1,[9][10][11]28,33,34] Hypertension was defined as systolic and/or diastolic blood pressure≥140/90 mmHg and/or documented use of antihypertensive medications in a previously diagnosed person with hypertension. [34] Diabetes mellitus was defined based fasting venous plasma glucose of ≥126 mg/dL which was confirmed by a repeat test on second clinic visit or current use of antidiabetic medications.…”

“…[1] The blood pressure was measured using auscultatory method with standard mercury in glass Accuson sphygmomanometer. [1,[9][10][11]28,33] The blood glucose was determined after an overnight fast between 8.00 hours to 10.00 hours using venous plasma by glucose oxidase method. [1,[9][10][11]28,33] A repeat fasting plasma glucose was done for those who had abnormal fasting plasma glucose test result on the next scheduled clinic visit.…”

“…[1,2] The predisposition factors include family-related bio-social characteristics such as type of family, family structure, family size, type of marriage, family diets, family physical activities, and family history of cardio-metabolic disorders among others. [1,9,10,11] These family biosocial variables have been documented to influence disease morbidity profiles in Nigerian families. [11,26,27] The promotional factors include health promotional and wellness technologies and programs.…”

“…[6][7][8] Normal adiposity of the abdomen (flat abdomen) is viewed as the ideal abdominal adiposity in western societies [6,7] in contrast to the perception in traditional Nigerian societies where protruding abdomen (abdominal obesity) is culturally perceived as a symbol of good health and wealth. [1,3,5] The clinical criteria for defining obesity have been variously described including anthropometric measurement of body mass index, [9,10,11] waist circumference (WC), [1,5] waist hip ratio, [2] neck circumference [12] among others and imaging techniques such as computed tomography scan and magnetic resonance imaging. [1,2] Although, the imaging methods are the gold standard for assessing abdominal adiposity, they are expensive for large scale epidemiological studies.…”