Waist-height ratio highlights detrimental risk for olanzapine associated weight gain earlier than body mass index.

Objective: The objective of the current study was to compare the level of sensitivity of body mass index (BMI) or waist-height ratio (WHtR) in identifying physically determinable adiposity levels that are considered to be landmarks for commencing intervention to prevent more sinister cardio-metabolic risks among schizophrenia patients receiving olanzapine.

Methods: The study was a descriptive crossectional one among patients with schizophrenia recieving olanzapine and healthy volunteers as controls. Key measurement of anthropological parameters were compared between the population.

Results: Our findings revealed significantly higher rates of abnormal body mass index (BMI) (X²=17.06, p=0.000036; OR=4.58, CI=2.16-9.74) and abnormal waist-height ratio (WHtR) (X²=35.57, p=2.46E-9; OR=6.37, CI=3.39-12.00) among the schizophrenia patients compared to the healthy volunteers. Notably, BMI identified 43.3 % of the schizophrenia patients as having concerning weight changes, whereas WHtR identified 64.7 %, indicating that WHtR is a more sensitive measure. This discrepancy means that an additional 21.4 % of schizophrenia patients would benefit from weight management guidance based on WHtR rather than BMI.

Conclusion: Our results underscore the critical importance of WHtR in assessing adiposity among schizophrenia patients treated with olanzapine, highlighting its value as a tool for monitoring and managing cardiometabolic risks in this population.