DEFINING OBESITY IN PATIENTS UNDERGOING ORTHOTOPIC HEART-TRANSPLANTATION - BODY-MASS INDEX VERSUS PERCENT BODY-FAT

We examined body mass index (BMI) as a proxy for percent body fat amon g 26 men and women successfully undergoing orthotopic heart transplant ation. Percent body fat was determined by use of bioelectrical impedan ce techniques. We found that, although BMI was well correlated with pe rcent body fat (r = 0.58, p < 0.01), use of a BMI of greater than 27 k g/m(2) to define obesity potentially misclassified patients when compa red with defining obesity as a percentage of body fat as both greater than 30% (BMI = 9 of 26 patients vs percent body fat = 6 of 26 patient s) and greater than 40% (BMI = 9 of 26 versus percent body fat = 1 of 9). We conclude that percent body fat measurements are more methodolog ically appropriate means for defining obesity among these patients.