Larger body mass index and waist circumference are associated with lower mortality in Chinese long-term care facility residents.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the association between body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference (WC) and all-cause mortality of Chinese residents in long-term care facilities in Taiwan.


METHODS
Prospective cohort study.


METHODS
Eight long-term care facilities in Taiwan.


METHODS
Three hundred fifty-four residents aged 60 and older (median 78.4, range 60-101; 156 men, 198 women) were recruited during the study period.


METHODS
Anthropometrics and metabolic parameters were measured at baseline. Mean BMI was 21.7 ± 4.2 kg/m(2) (range 11.6-35.3 kg/m(2) , and mean WC was 82.4 ± 10.9 cm (range 55.0-124.0 cm). Mortality data were from the Department of Health in Taiwan.


RESULTS
There were 219 deaths during the 5 years of follow-up. After adjusting for age, sex, albumin, Karnofsky performance status scale, hypertension, and diabetes mellitus, subjects in the highest quartile of BMI (27.3 ± 2.8 kg/m(2) ) and WC (96.7 ± 7.4 cm) had a significantly lower mortality rate than did subjects in the lowest quartile (BMI, 16.7 ± 1.7 kg/m(2) ; WC, 69.6 ± 4.2 cm). After further stratification according to central obesity status, the subjects in the two highest BMI quartiles had a lower mortality rate than those in the lowest BMI quartile but only in the central obesity group (≥ 90 cm in men or ≥ 80 cm in women). The adjusted relative risk for all-cause mortality in the highest versus lowest BMI quartile was 0.17 (95% confidence interval = 0.05-0.57).


CONCLUSIONS
BMI and WC were negative predictors for all-cause mortality in older Chinese adults living in long-term care facilities. Participants with higher WC and BMI had lower all-cause mortality.
Department of Family Medicine, China Medical University Hospital, [corrected] Taichung, Taiwan.
Wen-Yuan
WY
Lin
Jeanine
J
Albu
Chiu-Shong
CS
Liu
Hui-Ying
HY
Huang
F Xavier
FX
Pi-Sunyer
Chia-Ing
CI
Li
Tsai-Chung
TC
Li
Cheng-Chieh
CC
Lin
Kuo-Chin
KC
Huang
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D015992:Body Mass Index; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006707:Homes for the Aged; D006801:Humans; D008134:Long-Term Care; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009026:Mortality / Q000639:trends*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D013624:Taiwan; D055105:Waist Circumference