European Journal of Cardiovascular Medicine

Objective: Obesity has been associated with pulmonary dysfunctions in not only morbid but also in mild obesity. The respiratory morbidity in obese persons is due to alterations in respiratory mechanics and decreased respiratory muscle endurance. An observational cross sectional study was planned to find out the association between parameters of obesity measured by anthropometry such as  body mass index(BMI), waist circumference(WC), waist/height ratio(W/Ht), waist/hip ratio(WHR) and total body fat %(BF%), & lean body mass(LBM) with spirometry functions in college students.  Material & methods: The study was approved by the Institutional ethics committee. Body fat % and LBM was assessed by bioimpedence analysis using Quadscan 4000 bodystat machine (Isle of Mann UK). Lung functions were assessed under the guidelines of ATS with the help of spiroexcel software (physiopac pp4,16 channel polygraph machine).  Results: A significant negative correlation was found between BF% & FVC, FEV1, MVV, FEF 25-75%. Lean body mass (LBM) showed a strong positive correlation with FVC, FEV1, MVV, and FEF 25-75% in adolescent girls. For adolescent boys, body weight was negatively correlated with FVC & FEV1. The BF% was strongly negatively correlated with MVV & FEF 25-75%. LBM was positively correlated with FVC, FEV1, FEV1/FVC, MVV & FEF 25-75%. Conclusion: The BF % had a stronger correlation with spirometry functions than BMI, thus suggesting that BF% was a major determinant of the reduced pulmonary functions in adolescent age group than BMI.