Exp Clin Endocrinol Diabetes 2001; 109(6): 337-339
DOI: 10.1055/s-2001-17400
Articles

© Johann Ambrosius Barth

Obesity in Austria: Body mass index of 15 000 euthyroid men and women referred to a thyroid outpatient service between 1992 and 2000

H. Vierhapper
  • Clinical Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Clinic for Internal Medicine III, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
Further Information

Publication History

Publication Date:
19 September 2001 (online)

Summary:

A mean body mass index (BMI) of 25.4 ± 5.0 kg/m2 was calculated in 15439 euthyroid patients newly referred to our thyroid outpatient department from January 1, 1992 until December 31, 1999. This patient population included 2916 men aged 50 ± 16 years (BMI: 26.2 ± 4.3 kg/m2) and 12563 women aged 47 ± 17 years (BMI 25.3 ± 5.1 kg/m2 ). Mean BMI appeared to rise (p < 0.01) from 25.0 ± 4.7 kg/m2 (1992) to 25.6 ± 5.0 kg/m2 (1999) and the share of obese patients (BMI > 30 kg/m2) increased from 13.8% in 1992 to 17.2% in 1999. However these changes were parallelled by a rise (p < 0.01) in the mean age of newly referred patients from 45 ± 16 years (1992) to 49 ± 17 years (1999). When the whole population was subdivided into groups of different age no time-related trend was apparent in mean BMI or in the prevalence of obesity in any of these subgroups. Only in men and women beyond 60 years of age BMI of those referred in 1998 and 1999 was higher (p < 0.05) than in those individuals referred in 1992 - 1994. These data indicate that close to half of all euthyroid patients referred to a thyroid outpatient service in eastern Austria is overweight. From 1992 to the end of 1999 there was, however, no marked increase in the prevalence of obesity in this population.

References

  • 1 Bray G A. Pathophysiology of obesity.  Am J Clin Nutr. 55 488S-494S 1992; 
  • 2 Flegal M D, Carroll R J, Kuczmarski R J, Johnson C L. Overweight and obesity in the United States: prevalence and trends, 1960-1994.  Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord. 22 39-47 1998; 
  • 3 Hebebrand J, Wulftange H, Goerg T, Ziegler A, Hinney A, Barth N, Mayer H, Remschmidt H. Epidemic obesity: are genetic factors involved via increased ratess of assortative mating?.  Int J Obesity. 24 345-353 2000; 
  • 4 Lee A, Dundoo G. Evaluation and Management of Obesity in the Elderly. In: Contemporary Endocrinology: Endocrinology of Aging J. E. Morley and L.van den Berg, eds., Humana Press, Totowa, NJ 20: 205-220 2000
  • 5 Mokdad A H, Serdula M K, Dietz W H, Bowman B A, Marks J S, Koplan J P. The spread of the obesity epidemic in the United States, 1991-1998.  J Amer Med Assoc. 282 1519-1522 1999; 
  • 6 Rosenbaum M, Leibel R L, Hirsch J. Obesity.  New Engl J Med. 337 396-407 1997; 
  • 7 SAS Users's Guide .Statistics. Cary, NC, SAS Institute 1982
  • 8 Seidell J C. Societal and personal costs of obesity.  Exp Clin Endocrinol Diabetes 106 ((Suppl 2)) 7-9 1998; 
  • 9 Vierhapper H, Nardi A, Grösser P. Prevalence of paradoxically normal serum concentrations of cholesterol in morbidly obese women.  Metabolism. 49 607-610 2000; 
  • 10 Wayne E J. Clinical and metabolic studies in thyroid disease.  Br Med J. 1 78-90 1960; 
  • 11 World Health Organization MONICA Project . Geographical variation in the major risk factors of coronary disease in men and women aged 35-64 years.  World Health Stat Quart. 41 115-140 1988; 

H. VierhapperM.D. 

Clinical Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism

Department of Internal Medicine III

Währinger Gürtel 18-20

A-1090 Wien

Austria

Phone: +43-1-4 04 00-43 48

Fax: +43-1-4 04 00-62 10

Email: h.vierhapper@akh-wien.ac.at