Background:
Obesity is a medical condition in which excess body fat is accumulated to an extent that it may have a negative effect on health. It is recognized currently as a worldwide epidemic causing various chronic disease and high mortality rates. This study aimed at assessing the relationship between body mass index BMI and hospital admission in Saudi ethnicity.
Methodology:
A cross-sectional study was conducted involving 968 study subjects who visited King Abdulaziz University Hospital (KAUH), Jeddah, Saudi Arabia during the month of July 2017. The body measurements were taken. Chi-square, t-test, and one-way ANOVA test were used for statistical analysis of the data.
Results:
Among the 968 studied subjects, 516 were male subjects and 452 (46.9%) were females. Based on BMI categorization, majority of the subjects 70 (7.2%) were found to be underweight, 298 (30.8%) had normal weight, 310 (32%) were overweight, and 290 (30%) were obese. There was no significant association between BMI and hospital admission among the studied subjects. However, a statistically significant association was found between BMI and admission based on gender difference (p
Key words: Hospital admission, inpatient, hospitalization, body mass index (BMI), obesity, overweight.
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