Context
Android obesity is considered an important predictor of increased mortality and morbidity from diabetes mellitus and cardiovascular disorders.
Aim
Our research was conducted to assess the level of serum visfatin in android obesity and its relation to anthropometric and biochemical parameters in adults with android obesity.
Patients and methods
This study was conducted on 136 patients recruited from the outpatient obesity clinic of Specialized Medical Hospital, Mansoura University. The patients were divided into two groups: group I consisted of 65 control nonobese individuals, and group II consisted of 71 obese individuals with android obesity. The obese patients were subdivided into obese diabetic patients (35 patients) and obese nondiabetic patients (36 patients). All participants were subjected to thorough history taking, full clinical examination, and anthropometric measurements to assess body mass index and waist circumference. The changes that appeared in the carbohydrate metabolism were interpreted according to the criteria from the glycometabolic classification of WHO. Plasma glucose levels, lipid profile, and serum visfatin were measured.
Results
Our study demonstrated a significant elevation of visfatin (≤0.001) in obese individuals (37.6; 20.7–65.9) compared with that in lean patients (15.3; 7.5–20). Additionally, visfatin levels were higher in the diabetic obese subgroup (45.5; 33.7–65.9) than in the nondiabetic obese subgroup (32; 20.7–46.5). Furthermore, visfatin was positively correlated to blood glucose in the obese group, which suggests a role of visfatin in glycemic control. A significant correlation between visfatin and lipid profile was demonstrated, which may suggest a role for visfatin in lipid homeostasis.
Conclusion
Serum visfatin was elevated in patients with android obesity, with more significant elevation in patients with android obesity with type 2 diabetes mellitus. It showed potential to be used as a marker of metabolic syndrome as it had a strong relation to android obesity.