Cardiovascular risk and use of conicity index in patients submitted to autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the prevalence of overweight and the use of conicity index for cardiovascular risk assessment in individuals submitted to autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. METHODS: The sample comprised 91 patients of both sexes, who underwent autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation from September 2008 to December 2013, aged 18 years or over. To determine the nutritional profile, we collected anthropometric data on weight, height, waist circumference upon hospital admission. The body mass index and the conicity index were calculated. RESULTS: A total of 91 patients diagnosed with multiple myeloma, Hodgkin's lymphoma, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and other conditions were evaluated. The mean age was 43.5 (14.2) years, 63.7% were male. We verified that according to the body mass index, 63.7% were overweight and, according to waist circumference, 74.7% had a higher risk for cardiovascular diseases. According to the calculation of the conicity index, 92.3% of patients presented increased cardiovascular risk. Patients with multiple myeloma had a higher conicity index when compared to other patients (p<0.01). CONCLUSION: This study revealed a high prevalence of overweight and cardiovascular risk. It should be noted that the conicity index was a good method to evaluate cardiovascular risk and that new studies using this index should be performed.