Serum leptin and lipid profiles in Thai obese and overweight subjects

The weight, height, body mass index (BMI). waist/hip ratio, serum leptin an d lipid profiles of 48 overweight (BMI greater than or equal to 25.00) Thai males and 166 overweight Thai females, compared with 26 males and 81 femal es in a control group (BMI = 18.5-24.9 kg/m(2)), were investigated. Subject s for the study were those persons who turned up regularly for physical che ck-ups at the out-patient department, general practice section of the Rajvi thi Hospital, Bangkok. The study was conducted between March-October, 1998. Statistically significantly higher levels of serum leptin, cholesterol, LD L-C, LDL-C/HDL-C ratio and trielyceride were found in the overweight compar ed with the control subjects. The median serum leptin concentration in over weight subjects was 19.6 (2.0-60.0 ng/ml) compared with 9.0 (range 1.0-30.0 ng/ml) in the control subjects (p < 0.001). The median values of leptin se rum concentrations in the overweight and obese males were significantly hig her than those of the overweight and obese females. A total of 66.7% (32 ou t of 48) of the overweight and obese moles had elevated leptin levels, whil e elevated leptin levels were found in 87.3% (145 out of 166) of the overwe ight and obese females. A total of 18.8% and 21.1% of the overweight and ob ese males and Females respectively had cholesterol concentrations of <great er than or equal to> 6.48 mmol/l. However, the prevalence of low HDL-C (HDL -C < 0.91 mmol/l) was found to be 41.7% in the overweight and obese males a nd 4.2% in the overweight and obese females. Statistically significant asso ciations were found between weight, height, BMI, waist, hip, waist/hip rati o, HDL-C, and serum leptin in both overweight male and female subjects. A n egative correlation was found between serum leptin and LDL-C/HDL-C ratio in both the overweight and obese subjects.