Evidence map›Paper›PMID 25980380›Full record

ArticleBMC pediatrics2015

Waist-to-height ratio is more closely associated with alanine aminotransferase levels than body mass index and waist circumference among population-based children: a cross-sectional study in Japan.

Hirotaka Ochiai, Takako Shirasawa, Rimei Nishimura, Hinako Nanri, Tadahiro Ohtsu, Hiromi Hoshino, Naoko Tajima, Akatsuki Kokaze

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in BMC pediatrics, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
5citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

5 citing papers in PubMed.

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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

Hirotaka OchiaiDepartment of Public Health, Showa University School of Medicine, 1-5-8 Hatanodai, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo, 142-8555, Japan. h-ochiai@med.showa-u.ac.jp.
Takako ShirasawaDepartment of Public Health, Showa University School of Medicine, 1-5-8 Hatanodai, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo, 142-8555, Japan. shirasawa@med.showa-u.ac.jp.
Rimei NishimuraDivision of Diabetes, Metabolism and Endocrinology, Department of Internal Medicine, Jikei University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan. rimei@jikei.ac.jp.
Hinako NanriDepartment of Public Health, Showa University School of Medicine, 1-5-8 Hatanodai, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo, 142-8555, Japan. nanrih@med.showa-u.ac.jp.
Tadahiro OhtsuDepartment of Public Health, Showa University School of Medicine, 1-5-8 Hatanodai, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo, 142-8555, Japan. tohtsu@med.showa-u.ac.jp.
Hiromi HoshinoDepartment of Public Health, Showa University School of Medicine, 1-5-8 Hatanodai, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo, 142-8555, Japan. hhiromi@med.showa-u.ac.jp.
Naoko TajimaJikei University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan. ntajima@jikei.ac.jp.
Akatsuki KokazeDepartment of Public Health, Showa University School of Medicine, 1-5-8 Hatanodai, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo, 142-8555, Japan. akokaze@med.showa-u.ac.jp.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundAn association between anthropometric measurements, including waist circumference (WC), and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels has been reported among adults. However, studies conducted among population-based elementary schoolchildren to date have been limited, especially in Japan, where the measurement of WC and blood collection are not usually performed in the annual health examination at elementary schools. The present study investigated the association between anthropometric measurements and ALT levels among population-based elementary schoolchildren in Japan.

methodsSubjects were fourth-grade schoolchildren (aged 9 or 10) from the town of Ina in Saitama Prefecture, Japan during 2004-2009. The height, weight, and WC of each subject were measured, and blood samples were drawn to measure ALT levels. Childhood overweight or obesity was defined according to the age- and sex-specific cut-off points proposed by the International Obesity Task Force. Spearman's correlation coefficients between anthropometric measurements (body mass index (BMI), WC, and waist-to-height ratio (WHtR)) and ALT levels were calculated.

resultsData from 2499 subjects (1293 boys and 1206 girls) were analyzed. BMI, WC, and WHtR were significantly positively correlated with ALT levels; the correlation coefficient of ALT levels with WHtR was higher than that with BMI and WC in boys and girls. In the analysis stratified by physique (non-overweight/obesity, overweight, or obesity), all anthropometric measurements were significantly positively correlated with ALT levels among boys, while only WHtR was significantly positively correlated with ALT levels among girls. Moreover, the correlation coefficient of ALT levels with WHtR was more pronounced than that with BMI and WC in the non-overweight/obesity group, in the overweight group, and in the obesity group for each sex.

conclusionsThe present study showed that WHtR was more closely associated with ALT levels than BMI and WC. Furthermore, only WHtR was significantly positively associated with ALT levels regardless of sex and physique. This study suggests that it is more useful to monitor WHtR than BMI and WC as a surrogate for ALT levels among population-based elementary schoolchildren.

Indexed as

Body HeightBody Mass IndexWaist CircumferenceAlanine TransaminaseChildCross-Sectional StudiesFemaleHumansJapanMaleObesityOverweightSex FactorsAlanine Transaminase

Identifiers

PMID25980380
PMCPMC4477294

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.