Anatomical distribution of subcutaneous body fat in a sample of school children of Los Teques: absolute patterns and familial aggregation

The absolute patterns of subcutaneous body fat distribution were studied in a sample of school children from Los Teques, Miranda, formed by 222 females and 216 males, with ages between 6 and 17 years. These patterns were obtained based on the means by age and sex of the measurements expressed in mil...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inActa científica venezolana Vol. 41; no. 4; p. 233
Main Authors Omaira Arsenak, M, Rodríguez-Larralde, A
Format Journal Article
LanguageSpanish
Published Venezuela 1990
Subjects
Adipose Tissue - anatomy & histology
Adolescent
Age Factors
Analysis of Variance
Body Mass Index
Child
Female
Humans
Male
Sampling Studies
Sex Factors
Venezuela
Weights and Measures
Venezuela
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Summary:The absolute patterns of subcutaneous body fat distribution were studied in a sample of school children from Los Teques, Miranda, formed by 222 females and 216 males, with ages between 6 and 17 years. These patterns were obtained based on the means by age and sex of the measurements expressed in millimeters, of 5 skinfolds: tríceps, subscapular, suprailiac, thigh and medial calf. Resemblance between sibs for height, weight and these 5 skinfolds was estimated through an intraclass correlation coefficient based on 100 pairs of sibs. Correlations between 100 random pairs of unrelated subjects were also estimated for these same variables in order to make comparisons between the correlation values obtained when biological relationship exists and when it is absent. The absolute patterns show that females are fatter than males, and that a redistribution of fat from extremities to trunk occurs from adolescence up to adulthood, more evident and taking place earlier in males. The intraclass correlation coefficients between sibs were higher than those between unrelated pairs, for all variables except for medial calf; these tendencies suggest the presence of genetic and/or common environmental factors on the determination of these variables. The highest correlation between sibs was obtained for height; within the five skinfolds, thigh is the one with the highest correlation value, whereas medial calf shows the lowest, suggesting that this is the skinfold with the smallest genetic component in its determination.
ISSN:0001-5504