Abstract

ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND:
Obesity has become a leading health concern; this condition is a chronic, complex, multifactorial disease in which a person's weight is ≥ 20% of the ideal weight for a given height.
OBJECTIVE:
To measure serum leptin level and lipid profiles levels in Iraqi obese individuals comparing the results with matching non obese subjects.
METHODS:
The study was carried on 30 individuals divided into two groups:
1. Obese subjects group (n=20).
2. Non-obese subjects group (n=10).
For all subjects studied measurements of fasting serum leptin and lipid profile have been done.
RESULT:
Our study showed that mean serum leptin level was significantly higher in obese than non-obese individuals (P<0.001). In addition serum leptin correlates positively and strongly with body mass index (BMI) ( r=0.765,P<0.01). Serum leptin also correlates positively with both triglyceride (TC)(r =0.394, P<0.05) and low density lipoprotein (LDL) (r=0.366,P<0.05) but correlates negatively with high density lipoprotein (HDL)(r=-0.408,P<0.05).
CONCLUSION:
circulating leptin levels appear to be one of the best biological markers of obesity and hyperleptinemia is closely associated with several risk factors related to obesity syndrome.