A Body shape index significantly predicts MRI-defined abdominal adipose tissue depots in non-obese Asian Indians with type 2 diabetes mellitus

Introduction We aimed to determine the correlations of volumes of subcutaneous abdominal adipose tissue (SCAT) (anterior, posterior, superficial and deep), total SCAT, intraperitoneal adipose tissue, retroperitoneal abdominal adipose tissue (RPAT), total intra-abdominal adipose tissue (IAAT), pancreatic volume, liver span, total body fat (TBF) and truncal fat mass (TFM) with anthropometric indices, viz., A Body Shape Index (ABSI), Hip Index, their Z scores and Anthropometric Risk Index in non-obese (body mass index (BMI) <25 kg/m2) Asian Indians with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Research design and methods Non-obese patients with T2DM (cases; n, 85) and BMI-matched, healthy subjects (controls; n, 38) underwent anthropometry, dual energy X ray absorptiometry (DXA) for estimation of TBF, TFM and 1.5 T MRI for estimation of volumes of abdominal adipose tissue depots, pancreas and liver span. Spearman’s correlation analysis and Receiver Operator Characteristic curve analysis were applied. Results The Z score of ABSI (Z_ABSI) showed significantly positive correlation with volumes of all depots of abdominal SCAT, total IAAT and RPAT in cases. Area under the curve for Z_ABSI (0.87) showed higher sensitivity: 82.0 %, specificity: 81.5 %, at a predictive cut-off value of 0.49 for abdominal adiposity. Conclusion In non-obese Asian Indians with T2DM, the Z_ABSI showed significant correlation with IAAT and SCAT and higher predictive accuracy for abdominal adiposity. Highlights of the study This is the first MRI-based study in the context of ABSI in non-obese (BMI <25 kg/m2) Asian Indians with T2DM. Findings indicate that Z_ABSI has high predictive accuracy for abdominal adiposity in non-obese Asian Indians. The Z_ABSI index showed significantly positive correlation with volumes of adipose tissue depots, viz., abdominal SCAT, total IAAT and RPAT in cases.