Usefulness of the High Triglyceride-to- HDL Cholesterol Ratio to Identify Cardiometabolic Risk Factors and Preclinical Signs of Organ Damage

OBJECTIVEdTo evaluate whether the high triglyceride-to-HDL cholesterol (TG-to-HDL-C) ratio is associated with cardiometabolic risk (CMR) factors and preclinical signs of organ damage in an outpatient population of white children and adolescents. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODSdThe study population included 884 subjects (aged 6–16 years), of whom 206 (23%) were normal weight, 135 (15%) were overweight, and 543 (61%) were obese. Biochemical variables were analyzed in the whole sample, whereas homocysteine and left ventricular (LV) geometry and function were evaluated in 536 and 258 children, respectively. RESULTSdThe percentage of pubertal children (P, 0.001), as well as measurements of BMI, waist circumference, homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance, white blood cell count, alanine aminotransferase (ALT), systolic blood pressure (P, 0.0001, for all), creatinine (P, 0.001), and diastolic blood pressure (P, 0.02), increased from the lowest to the highest tertile of the TG-to-HDL-C ratio. Age, sex, homocysteine, and glomerular filtration rate did not change. Moreover, interventricular septum thickness, relative wall thickness, and LV mass index (P = 0.01 to P, 0.0001) increased across tertiles of the TG-to-HDL-C ratio. Children with