CERTAIN obesity types significantly increase risk of death in individuals with digestive diseases, according to a recent study analysing obesity’s impact on mortality. The research offers clinicians new insights into how combined metrics of obesity can more accurately inform mortality risk in this patient population.
Traditionally, BMI and WC are the main indicators of obesity, with BMI commonly used as a general marker of subcutaneous fat. While BMI captures overall body fat, it does not account for visceral fat, which is better represented by WC. By combining both measures, researchers aimed to differentiate obesity into four groups for patients: general obesity, abdominal obesity, combined obesity (elevated BMI and WC), and non-obese, providing a more nuanced understanding of obesity’s role in digestive disease outcomes.
The study analysed data from 254,445 participants (average age: 57.8 years) from the UK Biobank, the world’s most detailed, long-term prospective health study. Using multivariate imputation to handle missing values, researchers applied Cox regression and inverse probability-weighted Cox regression models to determine the relationship between obesity types and mortality. In this cohort, 227,111 participants (89.3%) were censored, while 27,334 (10.7%) participants died during the study period.
Findings revealed that both abdominal and combined obesity serve as independent predictors of mortality in individuals with digestive diseases. Importantly, combined obesity was found to be a stronger predictor of mortality than abdominal obesity alone, highlighting the value of incorporating both BMI and WC in clinical evaluations.
Additionally, researchers identified several modifiable factors associated with mortality risk, including sex, socioeconomic status, lifestyle habits, and physical activity levels. This suggests that lifestyle interventions could be a critical strategy in reducing mortality risk in digestive disease patients with obesity.
The findings reinforce the importance of a dual-metric approach in assessing obesity and associated risks in patients with digestive diseases. Clinicians are encouraged to incorporate both BMI and WC in risk assessments to better guide lifestyle modifications.
Reference
Wang C et al. The role of obesity in mortality from digestive diseases in UK Biobank. Sci Rep. 2024;14:27126.
