Abstract

Background: Obesity increases the risk of and modifies the severity of various pulmonary illnesses. There is a variation in the published literature regarding the association between peak expiratory flow rate (PEFR) and anthropometric obesity parameters, particularly in young adult males.

Aim and Objectives: The aim and objectives of the study were to determine the impact of general obesity and abdominal obesity markers on PEFR in young adult males with and without obesity.

Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional observational study was conducted on 140 healthy young Indian adult males in the age group of 18–25 years. Participants were divided into two groups: The study group (n = 70; BMI ≥ 25 kg/m2) and the control group (n = 70; BMI: 18.5–22.9 kg/m2), based on the Asia–Pacific body mass index (BMI) classification. Weight and BMI were considered measures of general (overall or relative) obesity. For abdominal (central) obesity, hip circumference (HC), waist circumference (WC), waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), and waist-to-height ratio (WHtR) were calculated. PEFR was recorded with the Mini-Wright’s peak flow meter, and the best of three readings was considered. Statistical analysis was done with the Mann–Whitney U-test and Kendall’s tau correlation coefficient; P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.

Results: The PEFR value did not show any significant difference between the study groups, while a significant negative correlation was observed in the study (obese) group between BMI and PEFR.

Conclusion: BMI can be a better obesity marker to evaluate pulmonary disorders with PEFR and should be included in prediction equations for PEFR in young Indian adult males.

Key words: Obesity; Male; Peak Expiratory Flow Rate; BMI