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Wrist circumference is a clinical marker for insulin-resistance in overweight/obese children and adolescents. Insulin resistance is considered a major determinant of increased vascular resistance and hypertension. The aim of the study was to investigate the association between wrist circumference and systolic (S) and diastolic (D) blood pressure (BP) in a population of overweight/obese children and adolescents. A population of 1133 overweight/obese children and adolescents (n = 1133) were consecutively enrolled. Multivariate regression analyses were used to investigate the influence of independent variables on the variance of BP. The prevalence of hypertension was 21.74% in males and 28.95% in females (p = 0.048). The results showed that SBP was significantly associated with wrist circumference in both genders (p < 0.0001 for both comparisons). We found no association between DBP and wrist circumference in either gender. Wrist circumference accounted for 17% of the total variance of SBP in males and 14% in females. Wrist circumference, a marker of insulin resistance, is associated with increased SBP in overweight/obese children and adolescents, suggesting a role of insulin resistance in the pathogenesis and development of hypertension.

The aim of this study was to assess the relation of wrist circumference with changes in left ventricular (LV) structure in a population of overweight/obese children and adolescents. One hundred and six children and adolescents were consecutively enrolled. In all subjects body weight, height, wrist circumference, waist circumference, body mass index-standard deviation score, fasting glucose, insulin, lipid profile, and blood pressure were evaluated. All subjects underwent echocardiographic assessment, and the following parameters were evaluated: LV dimension at end diastole and LV dimension at end systole, LV posterior wall thickness at end diastole and LV posterior wall thickness at end systole, interventricular septal thickness at end diastole and interventricular septal thickness at end systole, LV mass, and epicardial adipose tissue (EAT). LV hypertrophy was defined as LVM Index >=95th percentile. Wrist circumference correlated with all parameters of LV dimensions and LV mass (p

OBJECTIVE Since patients with type 2 diabetes and positive for type 1 diabetes–specific antibodies have wide variations in BMI, this study evaluated whether the frequency and pattern of islet autoantibody positivity is related to BMI. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS Clinical and biochemical characteristics and islet autoantibodies including GAD and protein tyrosine phosphatases islet antigen-2 (IA-2)IC and IA-2(256–760) were evaluated in 1,850 patients with type 2 diabetes from the Non–Insulin Requiring Autoimmune Diabetes study cohort. BMI was evaluated in all patients, who were then subdivided in three groups according to BMI ( RESULTS Out of 1,850, 120 (6.5%) patients were positive for at least one of the following antibodies: GAD (4.1%), IA-2(256–760) (3.3%), or IA-2IC (1.1%). GAD and IA-2IC antibodies showed decreasing frequencies with increasing BMI (P < 0.0001 and 0.0006, respectively, for trend); in contrast, the frequency of IA-2(256–760) antibodies increased with increasing BMI (P = 0.005 for trend). Patients with type 2 diabetes positive for IA-2(256–760) alone showed a phenotype resembling classical obese type 2 diabetes, with higher BMI, waist circumference, and uric acid (P < 0.005 for all), lower thyroid peroxidase antibodies, and lower progression to insulin requirement than GAD antibody–positive patients (P = 0.04 and P = 0.0005, respectively). CONCLUSIONS The IA-2(256–760) antibody appears to represent an antibody marker that mainly identifies a clinical phenotype very similar to obese type 2 diabetes, suggesting a possible different pathogenetic mechanism.

AIM: To investigate the potential association of circulating zonulin with the stage of liver disease in obese children with biopsy-confirmed nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). METHODS: A case-control study was performed. Cases were 40 obese children with NAFLD. The diagnosis of NAFLD was based on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with high hepatic fat fraction (HFF ≥ 5%), and confirmed by liver biopsy with ≥ 5% of hepatocytes containing macrovesicular fat. Controls were selected from obese children with normal levels of aminotransferases, and without MRI evidence of fatty liver as well as of other causes of chronic liver diseases. Controls were matched (1-to 1) with the cases on age, gender, pubertal stage and as closely as possible on body mass index- standard deviation score. All participants underwent clinical examination, laboratory tests including zonulin, inflammatory and metabolic parameters, and MRI for measurement of HFF and visceral adipose tissue. RESULTS: Zonulin values were significantly greater in obese subjects with NAFLD than in those without NAFLD [median (interquartile range), 4.23 (3.18-5.89) vs 3.31 (2.05-4.63), P < 0.01]. In patients with NAFLD, zonulin concentrations increased significantly with the severity of steatosis and the Spearman’s coefficient revealed a positive correlation between zonulin values and steatosis (r = 0.372, P < 0.05); however, we did not find a significant correlation between zonulin and lobular inflammation (P = 0.23), ballooning (P = 0.10), fibrosis score (P = 0.18), or presence of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (P = 0.17). Within the entire study population, zonulin levels were positively associated with gamma-glutamyl transferase, 2-h insulin, HFF, and negatively associated with whole-body insulin sensitivity index (WBISI), after adjustment for age, gender and pubertal status. When the associations were restricted to the group of NAFLD patients, 2-h insulin, hepatic fat, and WBISI retained statistical significance. CONCLUSION: Circulating zonulin is increased in children and adolescents with NAFLD and correlates with the severity of steatosis.