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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Med.
Sec. Hepatobiliary Diseases
Volume 12 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fmed.2025.1511637

Association of arm circumference with the prevalence of gallstones in United States adults: A retrospective analysis on US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey

Provisionally accepted
Jianjun Wang Jianjun Wang 1,2Xi Chen Xi Chen 2Wei He Wei He 3Xintao Zeng Xintao Zeng 2Pei Yang Pei Yang 2Decai Wang Decai Wang 4*Jianping Gong Jianping Gong 1*
  • 1 The Second Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, 400010, China, Chongqing, China
  • 2 Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Mianyang Central Hospital, School of Medicine, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Mianyang, 621000, China, Mianyang, China
  • 3 Department of Stomatology, Mianyang Central Hospital, School of Medicine, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Mianyang, 621000, Mianyang, China
  • 4 Department of Urology, Mianyang Central Hospital, School of Medicine, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Mianyang, 621000, China, Mianyang, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Background: Arm circumference (AC) is a measure of nutritional status and an indicator of the risk of developing diseases, such as metabolic disorders. However, its relationship with the prevalence of gallstone disease (GS), a metabolic disorder, is unknown. Consequently, this research sought to investigate the relationship between AC and the prevalence of GS among the general adult population in America.Methods: Participant data were extracted from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2017-2020 cycle. GS was defined based on self-reported medical history. AC was measured following standardized protocols as the primary exposure variable. Multivariable logistic regression models were employed to assess the association between AC and GS. Doseresponse relationships were evaluated using generalized additive models with smoothed curve fitting, and subgroup analyses were conducted to explore effect modification by key covariates such as age, sex, race, hypertension, diabetes, and body mass index.Results: Overall, a total of 8,081 participants were included in this study, with 849 reporting a history of GS. After accounting for potential confounders, we discovered that each centimeter increase in AC was linked to an 8% rise in the prevalence of GS (Odd ratio = 1.08, 95% confidence interval: 1.07-1.10). Dose-response curves demonstrated a positive linear relationship between AC and the prevalence of GS, which, according to the results of the subgroup analyses, was consistent in the vast majority of subgroups, although there were subtle differences.Conclusions: AC exhibited a linear and positive association with the prevalence of GS. Although a causal relationship between AC and the prevalence of GS could not be established, our study provides strong new support for the potential role of AC in the health assessments of adult populations.

    Keywords: Gallstone disease, Arm circumference, Metabolic disorder, Cross-sectional study, NHANES

    Received: 15 Oct 2024; Accepted: 10 Jan 2025.

    Copyright: © 2025 Wang, Chen, He, Zeng, Yang, Wang and Gong. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Decai Wang, Department of Urology, Mianyang Central Hospital, School of Medicine, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Mianyang, 621000, China, Mianyang, China
    Jianping Gong, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, 400010, China, Chongqing, China

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