NECK CIRCUMFERENCE AS AN ADIPOSITY INDICATOR AND PREDICTOR OF CARDIOMETABOLIC RISK IN ADOLESCENTS

Objective: To investigate the association between neck circumference (NC) with the central and total adiposity, as well as cardiometabolic risk factors in adolescents. Design: A sectional study included 476 students (53% boys) from 10 to 19 years old of Brazilian population. Weight, height, neck and waist circumferences were measured following standard protocols and total body fat, trunk and android fat were obtained by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. Glicidic and lipidic profile, uric acid and arterial pressure have been assessed, and life style characteristics were self-reported. The adolescents were classified according to the presence of insulin resistance (IR) and metabolic syndrome (MetS). Results: The NC presented positive association with total fat body, trunk and android (p<0.05). The relation between NC with homeostasis model assessment-insulin resistance, uric acid and systolic arterial pressure remained the same when the sample was categorized by the nutritional status (eutrophic vs overweight ) and by the the occurrence of abdominal obesity (normal vs obese). The NC values were higher (p<0.05) in the groups which had ≥3 risk factors compared to the ones with 0 to 2 factors. The NC with cutoff point 28.8 and 29.9 cm for girls, as well as 31.7 and 30.4 cm for boys was capable of predicting in both genders the IR and the MetS, respectively (AUC>0.5; p<0.05). Conclusion: The NC can be an alternate instrument of obesity and cardiometabolic risk trial in adolescents.