Abstract

Several studies indicate that obesity is closely related to insulin resistance (IR). However, this relationship has not been adequately explored among Africans. This study aims to evaluate the prevalence of insulin resistance among obese Cameroonian women using some indirect methods for assessment of insulin resistance. We also analysed the correlation between some indices of IR with Triglyceride to HDL cholesterol ratio. We examined 230 obese and overweight women. Anthropometric measurements were done for all individuals. Blood lipids parameters, glucose and insulin were assayed after a 10 h fast. The indices McA, HOMA, QUICKI, ISI, FI and FIGR were used to assess insulin resistance. Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve analysis indicated that HOMA and QUICKI had high sensitivity and specificity for measuring IR compared to other indices. The overall prevalence of IR was 53.9% by HOMA-IR and 55.7% by QUICKI. TG/HDL-C method detected lower number of patients with IR in our study group and was not related to the homeostatic indexes of insulin resistance HOMA and QUICKI. This study indicates that insulin resistance is present in about half proportions of overweight and obese Cameroonian women.

Key words: Insulin resistance, obesity, body mass index, HOMA, QUICKI.