Lipid Profile Patterns of Overweight and Obese Primary Care Patients in Niger Delta Region, South-South Nigeria

Introduction: Overweight, obesity and their complications are major public health problems because of their effects on individuals, families and communities.

The objective of this study was to describe the lipid profile patterns of overweight and obese adult primary care patients attending the family medicine clinic of university of Uyo teaching hospital in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria.

Methods: This was a cross –sectional descriptive study done between October 2011 and March 2012. Using a systematic sampling technique, 584 subjects aged 18-65 years were recruited, data were collected with an interview-administered structured questionnaire. Subjects were measured for height, weight, waist and hip circumference. Body mass index (BMI) and waist –hip- ratio (WHR) were calculated. Using standard procedures, a complete lipid profile was done for all overweight and obese respondents. The lipid profile patterns of respondents were classified based on adult treatment plan III (ATP III).

Results: Of the 584 respondents, 196 (36.6%) were men and 388(66.4%) were women. The mean age for men was 43.3±17.8 years while that for women was 50.2±13.6 years. The prevalence of overweight amongst men was 39.8% versus 31.7% for women; 28.0% of men were obese compared to 52.0% for women. A total of 19.9% of overweight respondents had elevated levels of total cholesterol compared to 36.2% of obese (p=0.001).There was no significant difference in the levels of serum triglycerides between the overweight and obese respondents (p=0.12). A total of 11.9% of overweight respondents had elevated levels of low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) compared to 27.6% obese (p=0.001); 16.9% of overweight compared to 45.1% of obese respondents had reduced levels of high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) (p=0.001). There was no significant difference in the levels of serum lipids between male and female overweight and obese respondents in this study.

Conclusion: Overweight and obesity are now common in our environment. Abnormal lipid patterns are also common among the overweight and obese in our communities. Primary care physicians should now better appreciate the scope of care required by the overweight and obese patients in their care.