Introduction: Abdominal obesity is associated with type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, dyslipidemia and hypertension. The prevalence of abdominal obesity and its relationship with these comorbidities have not previously been examined in Danish primary care patients.
Material and methods: The IDEA study was an international cross sectional study including 168,159 patients worldwide. In Denmark, 47 randomly selected general practitioners included 847 consecutive patients. Age, gender, waist circumference, body mass index (BMI) and the presence of known comorbidities were recorded for all patients.
Results: The prevalence of abdominal obesity (waist circumference = 80 cm for women and = 94 cm for men) was 66% among women and 60% among men. There was a significant relationship between the degree of abdominal obesity and the prevalence of diabetes, dyslipidemia and hypertension for both sexes. There was a trend towards an increased prevalence of cardiovascular disease with increased waist circumference.
Conclusion: Abdominal obesity is very frequently found in Danish primary care patients, and it is associated with an increased prevalence of diabetes, dyslipidemia and hypertension. Patients with increased waist circumference should be screened to diagnose comorbidities related to the abdominal obesity.