by Robert Preidt
. Health reporter
Aerobic Belly Fat Loss - Belly Fat Ups Odds of Emergency Surgery Troubles
Monday, (Health news) - Excessive belly fat increases dramatically the risk of complications and death after emergency surgery, a new study finds.
The research included more than 600 patients who had emergency surgery and were submitted to computed tomography of the abdomen and pelvis before surgery. These scans were used to calculate hip waist rates, a tummy fat measure. A healthy proportion should not exceed 0.90 in men and 0.85 in women, according to the World Health Organization.
Almost 70% of the study patients had a non-unhealthy waist-to-hip ratio equal to or greater than 1.
"Our main goal is to identify those at risk of developing complications so that we can intervene adequately and improve healthcare provided," said the main author of the study, Dr. Faisal Jehan, a research colleague in the department of surgery at the University of Arizona, Tucson.
Overall, the complication rate was 33% and the mortality rate was 4%. The average hospital stay was four days, and the 30-day hospital readmission rate was 25%.
But for people with excessive belly fat, complications rates were 44% compared to 9% for those with finer middles. The mortality rate was almost 8% for those with more belly fat compared to 1 percent for those with slender bellies.
Hospitals were more than folded for those with excess fat belly, and the hospital readment was 32.5% versus 7% for those without excessive belly fat.
The researchers also found that a proportion of 1 or more hip waist was an independent predictor of complications and death, increasing the odds for seven and six times, respectively. The study was presented last week at the meeting of the American College of Surgeons (ACS) in San Diego. The findings presented in meetings are generally considered to preliminary until they have been published in a revised pair magazine.The findings are important because at least two-thirds of Americans are overweight or obese.
"Based on hip waist ratio, we can predict whether these patients are high risk and then take precautions to keep these patients on the radar. For example, we can call them for postoperative exams to check them early and quickly , and if they develop complications, we can move them quickly to the ICU so we can take care of these complications, "Jehan explained in an ACS news launch.
Body mass index (BMI) is not as effective as the hip waist rate in risk assessment, according to researchers. BMI is a measure of body fat based on height and weight.
"IMC has traditionally been used in hospitals to predict adverse results such as heart attacks, but one of the problems with BMI is that it does not take into account the distribution of body fat," Jehan said.
"The proportion of hip waist, however, specifically intended the concentration of visceral fat, which is the dangerous type around the abdominal organs," he said.
Most people who end up needing emergency surgery has a computed tomography made for other reasons. In this case, it is reasonable to use CT scan to measure belly fat. If a computed tomography has not been made, a measuring tape can be used to calculate the hip waist rate, the researchers said.
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