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Dialysis and Renal Disease Management / Chronic Kidney Disease and Diabetes · Journal article
Hormone Research in Paediatrics · August 11, 2026
Encouraging direction, but not yet definitive.
This retrospective cross-sectional study of 169 children with overweight and obesity found that elevated cystatin C is independently associated with central adiposity (waist circumference) and insulin resistance (HOMA-IR). The findings suggest cystatin C may serve as an integrated marker of metabolic and kidney risk in this population, but the design does not establish causality or clinical utility for prediction or intervention.
Retrospective cross-sectional study. Children with overweight and obesity.. n = 169.
Children in the highest cystatin C tertile had higher SDS-BMI, waist circumference, systolic and diastolic BP SDS, and iCARE index. Stepwise regression identified waist circumference and HOMA-IR as independent predictors of cystatin C. Elevated HOMA-IR, fasting glucose-to-insulin ratio, and TG:HDL ratio were present in the highest cystatin C tertile; glucose excursion did not differ.
Safety was not reported in the material analysed. Check the source before drawing any conclusion about harm.
Cystatin C may warrant investigation as a potential screening tool for early metabolic and kidney risk in obese children; however, prospective studies linking cystatin C to hard clinical outcomes are needed before routine use can be recommended.
A sound cross-sectional study in a focused population showing independent associations between cystatin C and measures of adiposity and insulin resistance, but limited by retrospective design, lack of prospective validation, and surrogate endpoints.
As stated by the source record.
Quoted from the source exactly as published.
Cystatin C may warrant investigation as a potential screening tool for early metabolic and kidney risk in obese children; however, prospective studies linking cystatin C to hard clinical outcomes are needed before routine use can be recommended.
Graded across the dimensions that decide whether you should act, each from what the source actually supports. There is no single score, and where a dimension was not assessed it says so.
ABSTRACT Background: Pediatric obesity is associated with early metabolic and kidney alterations, and identifying high-risk children remains challenging. Cystatin C may reflect both kidney and metabolic dysfunction. Objectives: To assess the relationship between cystatin C and measures of adiposity, insulin resistance (IR), and cardiometabolic risk in children with overweight and obesity. Methods: In this retrospective cross-sectional study, 169 children with overweight and obesity were analyzed. Anthropometric, blood pressure, kidney (serum creatinine, cystatin C), glucose/insulin, and lipid parameters were collected. Participants were stratified by cystatin C tertiles, and variables were compared across groups. Stepwise regression identified independent predictors of cystatin C. Results: Children in the highest cystatin C tertile had higher SDS-BMI, waist circumference (WC), systolic and diastolic BP SDS, and iCARE index—developed within the Improving Renal Complications in Adolescents With Type 2 Diabetes Through the REsearch (iCARE) Cohort Study as a marker of IR and metabolic risk. They also showed elevated HOMA-IR, fasting glucose-to-insulin ratio (FGIR) and TG:HDL ratio, while glucose excursion did not differ. Stepwise regression identified WC and HOMA-IR as independent predictors of cystatin C. Conclusion: Elevated cystatin C in children with overweight and obesity is independently associated with central adiposity and IR, supporting its potential as an integrated early marker of metabolic and kidney risk.
Taken from the source record, never inferred. Follow any of these and new work involving them reaches your briefing.