Anthropometric, Body Composition, and Biochemical Measurements in Morbidly Obese Patients Prior to Bariatric Surgery

Obesity is the most important risk factor for occurrence of chronic diseases. Morbid obesity could be accompanied by imbalance of body composition and serum levels of nutrients. Therefore, the aim of this study was to compare body composition and serum levels of nutrients in the bariatric surgery candidates with standard values. In this cross-sectional study, 100 morbid obese patients (22 men and 78 women) were enrolled. Their anthropometric and biochemical measurements were evaluated based on the standard protocols. Body composition was measured using the dual X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) method. Independent t-test was used to compare the mean of quantitative variables between genders and measurements with the standard values to estimate any deficiency. Grade 3 obesity (73%), abdominal obesity (100%), abnormal waistto-hip ratios (95%), abnormal body fat and fat-free mass percentages (100%), normal android-to-gynoid fat ratios (96%), and moderate body shape profiles (100%) were prevalent among the participants. Also, a deficiency of vitamin D (91%), vitamin B12 (19%), and iron (17% serum iron and 3% serum ferritin) was noticed. Serum levels of vitamin A (7%) and zinc (4%) were higher than normal among a part of population. There were no significant differences in the distributions of these indicators by gender. People with morbid obesity had abnormal amounts of fat and muscle tissue. Also, they were deficient regarding vitamin D, vitamin B12, and iron. Moreover, vitamin A and zinc levels in some people were higher than normal. Further studies are needed to confirm these findings in larger populations.