Meta-analysis on the association between adult metabolically healthy obesity and inflammatory factors

WU  Zijing; LI Jixin; QIU Linjie; REN Yan; ZOU Chacha; LI Meijie; LI Wenjie; ZHANG Jin

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Medical Journal of the Chinese People Armed Police Forces ›› 2025, Vol. 36 ›› Issue (5) : 426-434.

ORIGINAL ARTICLES

Meta-analysis on the association between adult metabolically healthy obesity and inflammatory factors

WU Zijing^1,2, LI Jixin², QIU Linjie², REN Yan², ZOU Chacha ^1,2, LI Meijie^1,2, LI Wenjie², ZHANG Jin²

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Abstract

Objective To systematically evaluate the association between adult metabolically healthy obesity (MHO) and various inflammatory factors, and to provide a basis for the early serological warning of obesity inflammation. Methods Cross-sectional studies on the association between MHO and inflammatory factors from CNKI, Wanfang, VIP, CBM , PubMed, Web of Science , Embase and Cochrane Library were retrieved, with the publication time limit set from inception to August 3, 2024. The quality of the literature was evaluated using the bias risk assessment form from AHRQ. Meta analysis was performed using RevMan 5.4 and a funnel plot was drawn. Subgroup analysis was conducted based on such aspects as the definitions of obesity and MS definitions (MS), regions and specific types of inflammatory factors. Results A total of 21 cross-sectional studies from 12 countries were included, involving 23308 research subjects, including 5842 MHO people and 17466 MHNO people. Meta-analysis results showed that white blood cell count (WBCC) (95%CI:0. 02~ 0. 18,P=0. 01), c-reactive protein (CRP) (95%CI:0. 53~0. 82,P<0. 00001), adiponectin (APN) (95%CI:-1 . 43 ~ -0. 43,P=0. 0003), leptin (LEP) ( 9 5%C I:1. 39 ~ 0 . 43, P< 0. 00001 ), and interleukin (IL) -6 (95%CI :0.1 3~1. 29,P=0. 02 ) were all correlated with adult metabolic health obesity. Analysis of each subgroup suggested that hypersensitive C-reactive protein (ha-CRP) showed a more significant difference than CRP in the two groups of people (SMD=0. 73, 95 %CI:0. 59 ~ 0. 88) . In the TNF-α and IL-6 groups, BMI≥25 kg/m² was more significant than 30 kg/m² as the diagnostic criterion for obesity between the two groups(SMD=1. 14,95%CI:0. 71~ 1. 56),(SMD = 2. 15,95 %C I:1. 6 5~ 2 . 64) . MHO people in North America had higher levels of APN and LEP than those in other regions( SMD =- 3. 16, 95%CI:-4.19~ -2. 13 ),( SMD = 8. 46 ,9 5% CI:6. 25 ,10. 67 ); The distribution symmetry of the funnel plot in this study was relatively good, indicating no significant publication bias. Conclusions Adult MHO is significantly correlated with inflammatory factors such as WBCC, CRP, APN, LEP, and IL-6. The detection of serum inflammatory factors in obese individuals is of great significance for early warning of obesity-related diseases.

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metabolically healthy obesity / inflammatory factor / early warning / meta analysis

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WU Zijing, LI Jixin, QIU Linjie, REN Yan, ZOU Chacha , LI Meijie, LI Wenjie, ZHANG Jin. Meta-analysis on the association between adult metabolically healthy obesity and inflammatory factors[J]. Medical Journal of the Chinese People Armed Police Forces. 2025, 36(5): 426-434

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