Objective: To evaluate anthropometric data, blood lipid levels, blood pressure (BP) and waist circumference (WC) in preschool children. To relate WC with blood lipid levels and BP in obese and non-obese children.
Methods: In a transversal study we investigated 65 preschool children of low socioeconomic level in Santo André, São Paulo. The evaluation consisted of BP measurement (Task Force, 1996), weight (W), height (H) expressed as z score (WHO, 1995) and body mass index (BMI), triglycerides, total and fractions of cholesterol blood levels (Kwiterovich and AHA).
Statistical analysis: Fisher test and correlations.
Results: We observed high BP and lipid levels unrelated to nutritional status. WC was significantly and positively correlated to BMI and ZWH (r = 0.87 and r = 0.83, respectively). Using as a cut-off 75 percentile of WC we found an accuracy of 89.1% with 87.2% specificity and 70.6% sensitivity and predictive value (+) 66.7% and (-) 66.7%. There was no relationship between WC and lipid and BP levels.
Conclusions: WC showed direct correlation with anthropometric indexes commonly used and in preschool children wasn't predictor of cardiovascular risk.