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Cited by 414Body Composition Measurement TechniquesDiabetes, Cardiovascular Risks, and LipoproteinsCardiovascular Disease and Adiposity

The prediction of abdominal visceral fat level from body composition and anthropometry: ROC analysis

Rankinen, T, Kim, S-Y, Pérusse, L, Després, J-P, Bouchard, C·1999·International Journal of Obesity
DOI 10.1038/sj.ijo.0800929
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Abstract

Objective To evaluate the merit of body mass index (BMI), % body fat, waist circumference and waist-to-hip ratio as predictors of abdominal visceral fat (AVF) level.Design Cross-sectional measurements obtained from 458 female and 331 male subjects of French Canadian descent with an age range from 18-72 y.Measurements AVF level was assessed by computed tomography. BMI was calculated as weight (in kg) divided by stature2 (in m), body density was derived from underwater weighing and % body fat was computed from the estimate of body density with the Siri equation. Waist-to-hip ratio was calculated as waist circumference divided by hip circumference. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were used to identify the optimal cut-off points.Results In younger women (< 40 y, n = 258), waist-to-hip ratio was the poorest predictor of AVF level with areas under the ROC curves (Az) ranging from 0.684-0.716, sensitivity (Sen) from 63.3-68.8% and specificity (Spe) from 64.0-67.5%, whereas the Az, Sen and Spe for other predictors ranged from 0.924-0.983, 87.0-96.8, and 83.4-92.7, respectively. The same trend was observed in older (> or = 40 y, n = 200) women, although differences between waist-to-hip ratio and other predictors were less pronounced. In older men, waist circumference was the best overall predictor (Az from 0.88-0.92), whereas BMI showed the lowest Az values (0.831-0.875, P < or = 0.001 vs waist circumference). In younger men, BMI had the smallest Az (P < 0.007 vs others) with the lowest AVF cut-off point (100 cm2). However, with higher AVF cut-offs the differences were not significant.Conclusion Waist circumference is the best overall predictor of abdominal visceral obesity, whereas in women waist-to-hip ratio is a poor indicator of AVF and its use as a surrogate measure of visceral fat should be avoided.

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  • Surrogate markers of fat mass and distribution, such as waist circumference and height-to-weight ratio, may more accurately define body composition in older adults.

    “although surrogate markers of fat mass and distribution, such as waist circumference (WC) and height-to-weight ratio, may more accurately define body composition in older adults [15].”

    From Obesity pharmacotherapy in older adults: a narrative review of evidence (2025) · cites this paper as [15]

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Authors
Rankinen, T., Kim, S.-Y., Pérusse, L., Després, J.-P., & Bouchard, C.
Affiliations
  • Université Laval (CA)
  • Gyeongsang National University (KR)
Corresponding author
Bouchard, C
ORCID
Venue
International Journal of Obesity
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Published
1999-08
Volume
23
Issue
8
Pages
801-809
ISSN
  • 0307-0565 (ISSN-L)
  • 1476-5497
DOI
10.1038/sj.ijo.0800929
OpenAlex
W2065981943
Cited by
414
References
46
Citations by year
2026: 6 · 2025: 7 · 2024: 6 · 2023: 9 · 2022: 5 · 2021: 22 · 2020: 10 · 2019: 24 · 2018: 13 · 2017: 13 · 2016: 15 · 2015: 18 · 2014: 23 · 2013: 26 · 2012: 31
FWCI
3.78
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Licence
www.springer.com/tdm (tdm)
Locations
  • International Journal of Obesity (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Funders
  • National Institutes of Health
  • National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (HL 45670, R01HL045670)
  • National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (R01DK034624, DK34624)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Body Composition Measurement Techniques
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism › Diabetes, Cardiovascular Risks, and Lipoproteins
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine › Cardiovascular Disease and Adiposity
Keywords
visceral fat, visceral obesity, body mass index, waist circumference, waist-to-hip ratio, body fat percentage, anthropometry, body composition, sex differences, age differences, French-Canadian population
MeSH terms
Adipose Tissue, Adolescent, Adult, Aged, Anthropometry, Body Composition, Body Constitution, Cross-Sectional Studies, Female, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Predictive Value of Tests, ROC Curve, Sensitivity and Specificity, Viscera, Body Mass Index

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