This article is more than 5 years old. Information may no longer be current.
High BMI may increase risk of colon adenomas
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts
An increased body mass index can heighten the risk of developing colon but not rectal adenomas, according to recent results.
In a meta-analysis of 36 separate studies, researchers examined data from 29,860 patients with colorectal adenomas (CRA). The purpose of the study was to determine the relationship between a high BMI and the risk of developing adenomas, as well as whether this relationship is impacted by additional factors such as sex, ethnicity or the type of adenoma, among others.
Researchers observed a 19% increase in risk for CRA associated with a 5-unit increase in BMI (SRR=1.19, 95% CI, 1.13-1.26). No statistically significant differences were found between the SRRs for males and females (P=.249), between white and East-Asian patients (P=.126) or between patients’ countries of origin (P=.772 for Europe vs. United States; P=.304 for Asia vs. United States).
The increased risk was also significantly associated with both nonadvanced (SRR=1.36, 95% CI, 1.17-1.58 across six studies) and advanced adenomas (SRR=1.70, 95% CI, 1.12-2.58 across nine studies). However, while the association between BMI and colon adenoma was found to be statistically significant (SRR=1.17, 95% CI, 1.06-1.28), the association between BMI and rectal adenoma was not (SRR=0.85, 95% CI, 0.74-0.99) (P<.001).
“This meta-analysis supports the hypothesis that excess body weight can significantly increase CRA risk,” the researchers wrote. “In future research, randomized controlled trials are needed to examine the effect of weight reduction in obese populations on the risk of CRA.”
Collapse
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts