ASSOCIATION OF GENERAL OBESITY WITH AN INCREASED RISK OF STROKE: HOSPITAL-BASED CASE CONTROL STUDY

Abstract

Obesity is one of the most prevalent conditions making a significant impact on public health worldwide. This study aims to evaluate the contribution of general and abdominal obesity to the risk of stroke based on a hospital-based case-control study conducted in a tertiary hospital in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The present study evaluates a total of 94 stroke patients and 188 stroke-free patients with age (±5years) and sex-matched controls and investigates associations between different markers of obesity (BMI, waist-to-hip ratio, waist circumference, and waist-to-height ratio) and evaluates the risk of stroke using logistic regression analysis adjusted for other risk factors. The results reveal that there is no significant difference in the BMI between the control and case group (p > 0.05). However, stroke patients from the case group have a significantly higher waist circumference, waist-to-hip ratio, and waist-to-height ratio as compared to non-stroke patients in the control group (p < 0.05). Central indices show the strongest correlation and better prediction of any obesity-related metric with the occurrence of stroke. Regardless of other vascular risk variables, WHR is the most accurate predictor of the obesity markers under investigation.