Factors Affecting Metabolic Syndrome in Individuals With Chronic Spinal Cord Injury

Abstract

Objective To assess the validity of different anthropometric measures (waist circumference [WC], body mass index [BMI], and percentage body fat) in diagnosing metabolic syndrome (MetS) among individuals with SCI and provides preliminary data for future studies in setting obesity cutoff values for this population. Methods This was a single-center retrospective cohort study. Sample information, anthropometric measures, and MetS variables of 157 individuals with chronic SCI were collected from an electronic medical records database. Results Increasing age (odds ratio [OR]=1.040, p=0.016) and lower neurological level of injury (OR=1.059, p=0.046) were risk factors for MetS. Male BMI (r=0.380, p<0.001) and male WC (r=0.346, p<0.001) were positively correlated with the number of MetS subfactors. Individuals with non-obese WC, excluding central obesity, were associated with having no MetS subfactors (p=0.005), and individuals with obese WC were associated with one or more subfactors (p=0.005). BMI was associated with MetS diagnosis (area under the curve=0.765, p<0.001), with the calculated cutoff value for BMI being 22.8 kg/m2. Conclusion This study calls for a stricter BMI cutoff for individuals with SCI in diagnosing MetS and warrants a large population-based study to define central obesity according to sex and ethnicity.

Keywords

• spinal cord injuries
• metabolic syndrome
• obesity