Cut-off point for Homeostatic Model Assessment for Insulin Resistance (HOMA-IR) index established from Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve in the detection of metabolic syndrome in overweight pre-pubertal children

To establish, among the cut-off values for the homeostatic model assessment for insulin resistance index (HOMA-IR) cited in the literature, the best in identifying metabolic syndrome (MS) in obese and overweight children. A total of 106 pre-pubertal children were studied. The definition of MS was adapted from that of the International Diabetes Federation. For each cut-off values for HOMA-IR, it was estimated sensibility and specificity for MS. A receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was generated using these values. The study included 106 obese (37 girls and 69 boys) and 34 overweight (19 girls and 15 boys) children aged 6,5 +/- 2,3 years. The accuracy of the ROC curve was 72%, and the best cut-off value for HOMAIR was 2,5, with sensitivity of 61% and specificity of 74%. HOMA-IR may be useful to detect MS and the cut-off 2,5 seems to be the best in obese and overweight pre-pubertal children.