The relationship between skinfold thickness and body mass index in North European Caucasian and East Asian women with anorexia nervosa: implications for diagnosis and management.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the relationship between skinfold thickness and body mass index (BMI) in North European Caucasian and East Asian young women with and without anorexia nervosa (AN) in two countries.


METHODS
Height, weight and skinfold thicknesses were assessed in 137 young women with and without AN, in Australia and Singapore. The relationship between BMI and the sum of triceps, biceps, subscapular and iliac crest skinfolds was analysed with clinical status, ethnicity, age and country of residence as covariates.


RESULTS
For the same BMI, women with AN had significantly smaller sums of skinfolds than women without AN. East Asian women both with and without AN had significantly greater skinfold sums than their North European Caucasian counterparts after adjusting for BMI.


CONCLUSIONS
Lower BMI goals may be appropriate when managing AN patients of East Asian ancestry and the weight for height diagnostic criterion should be reconsidered for this group.
Soh
Nerissa L
NL
Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services, Northern Sydney Central Coast Area Health Service, New South Wales, Australia. nsoh@nsccahs.health.nsw.gov.au
Touyz
Stephen
S
Dobbins
Timothy A
TA
Clarke
Simon
S
Kohn
Michael R
MR
Lee
Ee Lian
EL
Leow
Vincent
V
Ung
Ken E K
KE
Walter
Garry
G
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000856:Anorexia Nervosa / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy; D044466:Asian People / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D001294:Attitude to Health; D015992:Body Mass Index; D003863:Depression / Q000453:epidemiology; D005060:Europe; D005086:Existentialism; D005202:Asia, Eastern; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D010555:Personality Inventory; D012016:Reference Values; D012885:Skinfold Thickness; D044465:White People / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D055815:Young Adult