Cardiovascular risk factors in obese women and their first-degree relatives.

OBJECTIVE: Evidence for a connection between obesity and cardiovascular disease is derived from epidemiological studies. The aim of this study was to evaluate the cardiovascular risk factors in obese women and their first-degree relatives.

METHODS: Fifty-five obese women and their 154 first-degree relatives (daughter, son, sister, brother), 60 non-obese women and their 100 first-degree relatives were enrolled in this cross-sectional controlled study. Blood pressure, heart rate, body mass index (BMI), waist-to-hip ratio (WHpR), waist circumference (WC) and lipid levels were measured in all participants. Serum concentrations of insulin were measured by chemiluminescence method, plasma levels of high sensitive C-reactive protein (hs CRP) by immunoturbimetric assay and fibrinogen by coagulation method. Measurement of insulin resistance (IR) was calculated using homeostasis model assessment (HOMA). Statistical analysis was preformed using Chi-square, Student's t and Mann-Whitney U tests. The relationship between obesity indices and cardiovascular risk factors were studied using linear regression analysis.

RESULTS: Mean values of BMI in female and male relatives were found as 25.10+/-2.5 kg/m2 and 23.5+/-4.98 kg/m2, respectively. In relatives, the frequencies of obesity, overweight and normal weight were found to be 8.9%, 25.8% and 65.1%, respectively. Central obesity was found higher in males than in females in the first-degree relatives, using WC (28.5% vs. 14.3%, p=0.001) or WHpR (30.9% vs. 24.5%, p=0.002). Elevated blood pressure (>or=140/90 mmHg) was recorded in 23.6% of obese women and in 8.4% of their relatives. Mean HOMA-IR levels of obese women and their relatives were found as 3.26+/-0.7 and 2.07+/-1.1, respectively. Mean hs CRP levels of obese women and their relatives were 0.98+/-0.08 mg/dl and 0.23+/-0.03 mg/dl, respectively (p=0.002). Mean fibrinogen levels of obese women and their relatives were 443.21+/-45.9 mg/dl and 321.10+/-38.23 mg/dl, respectively.

CONCLUSION: In obese women and their relatives, body mass index and waist circumferences are related with blood pressure, total cholesterol, fibrinogen and insulin resistance. If there are obese women in family, first-degree relatives have 1.8 fold increased obesity frequency. Body mass index increases together with cardiovascular risk factors. In early term, prevention of obesity may decrease developing of cardiovascular risk.