Leptin levels in pre and post menopausal Pakistani women.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the correlation of fasting serum leptin levels with anthropometric measurements and menopausal status, in women. METHODS The study comprised of 80 non-obese women who were divided into 2 groups as pre-menopausal (n=46) and post-menopausal (n=34). Anthropometric measurements i.e. height, weight, waist and hip circumference were measured for all the subjects and the Waist-hip Ratio (WHR) and Body Mass Index (BMI) were calculated from these measurements. A fasting venous blood sample was taken from all the subjects and serum leptin concentrations were determined by ELISA. RESULTS A comparison of the mean values for BMI and WHR between the two groups showed a non significant difference. Within each group, significant associations were noted between the fasting serum leptin level and values of BMI and WHR. A comparison of the mean serum leptin concentrations between the two groups, showed a highly significant difference (p<0.001). CONCLUSION Our results indicate that in the non-obese women of our population, leptin levels associate with BMI and WHR and together with menopausal status seem to be important determinants of serum leptin levels.