Body mass index is decreased in children and adolescents with postural tachycardia syndrome

Özet

Our intent was to explore the predictive value of body mass index (BMI)in differentiating between vasovagal syncope (VVS) and postural tachycardiasyndrome (POTS) in children and adolescents. A total of 111 children andadolescents with POTS and 154 children and adolescents with VVS wereincluded in our study. The control group included 82 healthy children andadolescents. Height and weight were measured in all participants. The headup tilt test was performed in participants in all groups (POTS, VVS, andcontrol). BMI was significantly lower in children and adolescents with POTS(18.3±3.4) than in children and adolescents with VVS (20.3±4.2) and thecontrol group (20.5±2.9). The receiver operating characteristic curve wasperformed to determine the predictive value of BMI differentiation betweenPOTS and VVS and showed that a BMI of 19.30 was the cutoff value forthe probability of distinction. However, the results (BMI of 19.30) producedunsatisfactory sensitivity (57.1%) and specificity (28.8%) rates of correctlydiscriminating between patients with POTS and patients with VVS. Childrenand adolescents with POTS have a lower BMI compared with healthy peersor children and adolescents with VVS.