Conclusions

In this hospital-based cohort of adolescents with overweight and obesity, the CI showed a statistically significant but weak association with VF% and was inferior to BMI and WC in predicting visceral adiposity. WC showed the highest correlation with VF% among the indices examined and remains a practical and reliable marker of central adiposity in clinical settings. Although the CI incorporates multiple anthropometric parameters and has theoretical appeal, it provided limited additional value beyond conventional measures in this population. These findings apply specifically to adolescents already classified as overweight or obese in a single tertiary-care setting and should not be extrapolated to adolescents generally. Within this population, BMI and WC should remain the primary anthropometric tools for obesity and central adiposity assessment, while the CI may be considered only as a supplementary or research measure.