Anthropometric measurements for assessing insulin sensitivity on patients with metabolic syndrome, sedentaries and marathoners

The diagnosis of low insulin sensitivity is commonly done through the HOMA-IR index, in which fasting insulin and glucose blood levels are evaluated. Insulin and blood glucose levels are used for insulin sensitivity assessment by surrogate methods (HOMA-IR, Matsuda, etc), but anthropometric measurements like body weight, height and waist circumference are not considered, even if these variables also are related to low insulin sensitivity and metabolic syndrome. In this study we evaluate the impact of anthropometric measurements on the HOMA-IR, Matsuda and Caumo indexes to estimate insulin sensitivity. Specifically, we compare insulin sensitivity indexes with and without the anthropometric measurements in their equations on three different groups: patients with metabolic syndrome, sedentaries and marathoners. Results show relationships between anthropometric variables and insulin sensitivity indexes. On the other hand, subjects are mapped differently for insulin sensitivity assessment when anthropometric variables are taken into account. In addition, subjects diagnosed with normal insulin sensitivity could be considered as having low insulin sensitivity when anthropometric variables are considered.