Relevance of body composition in phenotyping the obesities

• Published in: Reviews in endocrine & metabolic disorders Vol. 24; no. 5; pp. 809 - 823
• Main Authors: Salmón-Gómez, Laura, Catalán, Victoria, Frühbeck, Gema, Gómez-Ambrosi, Javier
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Springer US 01.10.2023; Springer; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Adipose tissue; Adiposity; Body Composition; Body fat; Body Mass Index; Classification; Classification systems; Clinical medicine; Diabetes; Diabetes mellitus (non-insulin dependent); Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 - diagnosis; Dyslipidemia; Endocrinology; Humans; Hypertension; Internal Medicine; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Metabolic disorders; Nutrition; Obesity; Overweight; Patients; Phenotyping; Physiological aspects; Risk Factors; Type 2 diabetes; Waist Circumference; Weight control; Body fat percentage; Obesity; Waist circumference; Metabolic health; Phenotyping; Cardiometabolic risk; Visceral adipose tissue; Body composition; BMI
• ISSN: 1389-9155; 1573-2606; 1573-2606
• DOI: 10.1007/s11154-023-09796-3

Obesity is the most extended metabolic alteration worldwide increasing the risk for the development of cardiometabolic alterations such as type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and dyslipidemia. Body mass index (BMI) remains the most frequently used tool for classifying patients with obesity, but it does not accurately reflect body adiposity. In this document we review classical and new classification systems for phenotyping the obesities. Greater accuracy of and accessibility to body composition techniques at the same time as increased knowledge and use of cardiometabolic risk factors is leading to a more refined phenotyping of patients with obesity. It is time to incorporate these advances into routine clinical practice to better diagnose overweight and obesity, and to optimize the treatment of patients living with obesity.