Normal weight obesity and COVID-19 severity: A poorly recognized link

• Type of Material: Article
• Authors: Sathish Thirunavukkarasu, Emory University; Nitin Kapoor, Christian Medical College
• Language: English
• Date: 2020-11-01
• Publisher: ELSEVIER IRELAND LTD
• Publication Version: Final Published Version
• Copyright Statement: © 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
• Final Published Version (URL): http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.diabres.2020.108521
• Title of Journal or Parent Work: DIABETES RESEARCH AND CLINICAL PRACTICE
• Volume: 169
• Start Page: 108521
• End Page: 108521
• Grant/Funding Information: None
• Keywords: Science & Technology; Life Sciences & Biomedicine; Endocrinology & Metabolism
• Research Categories: Biology, Virology; Health Sciences, Public Health

Abstract

People with obesity (those with high body mass index (BMI)) and coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) are at increased risk of requiring intensive care unit admission and mechanical ventilation, and death. Although BMI is a commonly used measure of obesity in clinical settings, it cannot delineate fat-free mass from adipose tissue. Thus, people with normal weight on the BMI scale can have elevated body fat percent, particularly in the visceral area, an entity called normal weight obesity (NWO). Indeed, emerging evidence shows that visceral adiposity, independent of BMI, is associated with high risk of critical illness in patients with COVID-19. Identifying NWO individuals, who are at high risk for metabolic dysregulation and cardiometabolic disorders, is often and easily overlooked in clinical practice, where screening for obesity is based solely on BMI.