To evaluate the dose-response relationship between obesity indicators and cholelithiasis in minority populations in Qiannan and Qiandongnan regions of Guizhou Province.

Based on the cross-sectional survey data of the "China Multi-ethnic Cohort Study", 17 084 adults aged 30-79 from the Buyi, Dong and Miao ethnic groups in Qiannan and Qiandongnan regions of Guizhou Province were included. The association between obesity indicators and cholelithiasis was analyzed using logistic regression models, and their dose-response relationship with cholelithiasis was studied using restricted cubic spline models.

The overall prevalence of cholelithiasis in Qiannan and Qiandongnan regions was 9.0%, with women at 9.6% higher than men at 7.5%. There were statistically significant differences between the cholelithiasis group and the non-cholelithiasis group in terms of gender, age, ethnicity, smoking history, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, BMI, LAP, VAI, WHtR, WHR, WC, weight, TG, HDL-C and GLU (P<0.001). Compared to the non-cholelithiasis group, the cholelithiasis group had higher age, weight, TG, GLU, BMI, VAI, LAP, WHtR, WHR, WC. In the logistic regression model, after adjusting for confounding factors, BMI, WC, WHtR, LAP, WHR were all statistically significant. As the values of obesity indicators increased, the risk of cholelithiasis also increased. Further analysis of their dose-response relationship revealed a nonlinear increasing trend in the association strength with cholelithiasis as the levels of BMI (P Nonlinear=0.004 6), LAP (P Nonlinear=0.000 4), WC (P Nonlinear=0.042 2), WHR (P Nonlinear=0.021) increased. As the level of WHtR (P Nonlinear=0.210 7) increased, the association strength with cholelithiasis showed a linear increasing trend.

Among the ethnic minorities in the Qiannan and Qiandongnan regions of Guizhou, there is a linear and nonlinear dose-response relationship between obesity indicators and gallstone disease. Advocating for residents to strengthen obesity control and prevention is an important means to reduce the incidence of gallstone disease.