ESPE Abstracts

Background: Obesity is one of the most common nutritional problems in developed countries. The prevalence of obesity is rapidly progressing in children. It is associated with serious health hazards in adolescence and especially in adulthood, like hypertension, coronary artery disease, diabetes mellitus, etc.

Methods: A study was conducted including the pediatric patients presented to Indraprastha Apollo hospital with signs of insulin resistance. All patients were investigated with oral glucose tolerance test, Fasting lipid profile, Liver function test, Vitamin D, Thyroid profile and bone age assessment using Tanner-Whitehouse method (RUS).

Results: Among the study population (n=100) 61 patients were pre-pubertal and 39 patients were pubertal. 55 patients were obese, 33 were overweight and 10 had weight between 50^th and 23^rd adult equivalent. Among obese patients mean chronological age was 9.16±3.25 while bone age 10.97±3.07 (P<0.001), among overweight patients mean chronological age was 11.16±1.95 while bone age 12.17±1.87 (P<0.001). All patients had insulin resistance calculated with HOMA IR index, Matsuda Index and Stumvoll Index. Among the obese patients only 18.4% had High triglyceride levels. All the patient had vitamin D deficiency, five had subclinical hypothyroidism.

Conclusions: Obesity and overweight were associated with advanced bone age, which ultimately results in decreased final adult height. Hence bone age should be evaluated white treating obesity and require long term follow ups to predict the effects on adult height.