The triponderal mass index as a measure of adiposity in pediatric survivors of acute lymphoblastic leukemia: a cross-sectional study

Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is the most common type of childhood cancer. Treatments of ALL predispose survivors to obesity, which increases the risk of cardiovascular disease and diabetes. The hallmark of obesity is excess fat mass, and adiposity is a superior predictor of cardiometabolic risk when compared to Body Mass Index (BMI), yet clinical measures of adiposity in children are lacking. The Tri-Ponderal Mass Index (TMI) (kg/m3) is a more accurate adiposity measure compared to BMI z-score in the general pediatric population. This cross-sectional study aimed to validate TMI as an adiposity measure against DEXA scan-derived adiposity, and to compare it to BMI z-score, in pediatric ALL survivors. This study was a retrospective chart review of pediatric ALL survivors diagnosed between 2004 and 2015 at McMaster Children’s Hospital, a tertiary pediatric center in Ontario, Canada. One hundred and thirteen patients (Female n = 55, 48.70%) were included, and adiposity was measured using DEXA scans. Exploratory partial correlations and linear regression analyses were adjusted for age, sex, ethnicity, and ALL risk status. Both TMI and BMI z-score correlated with the DEXA-measured fat mass percentage (FM%) (partial correlation TMI versus FM% r = 0.56; p value < 0.0001; BMI z-score versus FM% r = 0.55; p value < 0.0001). In regression analyses, the association of TMI was not inferior to BMI z-score in assessing adiposity (TMI versus FM% estimated unstandardized B 0.80, 95% CI 0.56, 1.02; p value < 0.0001; BMI z-score versus FM% (unstandardized B 0.37, 95% CI 0.26, 0.49; p value < 0.0001). The TMI is a useful clinical adiposity-specific measure in survivors of pediatric ALL.