September 15, 2010The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism522 citationsOpen Access
View Full PaperImpact of Abdominal Visceral and Subcutaneous Adipose Tissue on Cardiometabolic Risk Factors: The Jackson Heart Study
Structured PICO
Are abdominal visceral and subcutaneous adipose tissue volumes differentially associated with cardiometabolic risk factors in individuals of African ancestry?
P
Population
2,477 participants of African ancestry from the Jackson Heart Study, mean age 58 years, 64% women.
I
Intervention
Assessment of abdominal visceral adipose tissue (VAT) and subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT) volumes via multidetector computed tomography.
O
Outcome
Association of VAT and SAT volumes with cardiometabolic risk factors (fasting plasma glucose, triglycerides, high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, hypertension, diabetes, and metabolic syndrome).surrogate
Abdominal visceral adipose tissue is more strongly associated with adverse cardiometabolic risk factors than subcutaneous adipose tissue, independent of BMI, in individuals of African ancestry.
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: Obesity is a major driver of cardiometabolic risk. Abdominal visceral adipose tissue (VAT) and sc adipose tissue (SAT) may confer differential metabolic risk profiles. We investigated the relations of VAT and SAT with cardiometabolic risk factors in the Jackson Heart Study cohort. METHODS: Participants from the Jackson Heart Study (n=2477; 64% women; mean age, 58 yr) underwent multidetector computed tomography, and the volumetric amounts of VAT and SAT were assessed between 2007 and 2009. Cardiometabolic risk factors were examined by sex in relation to VAT and SAT. RESULTS: Men had a higher mean volume of VAT (873 vs. 793 cm3) and a lower mean volume of SAT (1730 vs. 2659 cm3) than women (P=0.0001). Per 1-sd increment in either VAT or SAT, we observed elevated levels of fasting plasma glucose and triglyceride, lower levels of high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, and increased odds ratios for hypertension, diabetes, and metabolic syndrome. The effect size of VAT in women was larger than that of SAT fasting plasma glucose, 5.51±1.0 vs. 3.36±0.9; triglyceride, 0.17±0.01 vs. 0.05±0.01; high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, -5.36±0.4 vs. -2.85±0.4; and odds ratio for hypertension, 1.62 (1.4-1.9) vs. 1.40 (1.2-1.6); diabetes, 1.82 (1.6-2.1) vs. 1.58 (1.4-1.8); and metabolic syndrome, 3.34 (2.8-4.0) vs. 2.06 (1.8-2.4), respectively; P<0.0001 for difference between VAT and SAT. Similar patterns were also observed in men. Furthermore, VAT remained associated with most risk factors even after accounting for body mass index (P ranging from 0.006-0.0001). The relationship of VAT to most risk factors was significantly different between women and men. CONCLUSIONS: Abdominal VAT and SAT are both associated with adverse cardiometabolic risk factors, but VAT remains more strongly associated with these risk factors. The results from this study suggest that relations with cardiometabolic risk factors are consistent with a pathogenic role of abdominal adiposity in participants of African ancestry.