Does visceral adiposity correlate with hepatic fat content in obese children at risk for NAFLD?
Visceral adiposity, but not subcutaneous adiposity or BMI, correlates with hepatic fat content in obese children at risk for NAFLD.
ABSTRACT Objective: Central adiposity, a component of insulin resistance syndrome, is a risk factor for nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in adults. To determine whether a similar relationship occurs in children, hepatic fat content and adipose tissue distribution were assessed in obese children at risk for NAFLD. Methods: We reviewed the charts of obese children undergoing evaluation for NAFLD because of hepatomegaly or elevated serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) without obvious etiology. Hepatic fat fraction and adipose tissue distribution were obtained by rapid magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques. Hepatic fat content was determined by a modification of the Dixon method that involves fast gradient echo. Body fat distribution was assessed by using heavily T1‐weighted fast gradient echo technique on a single slice at the level of the umbilicus, and regions of interest were demarcated based upon pixel intensity threshold value including visceral adipose tissue (VAT) and subcutaneous adipose tissue content (SAT). Results: Ten children underwent hepatic MRI only. Twenty‐nine children underwent hepatic and adipose tissue distribution MRI. There was a correlation between hepatic fat fraction and VAT (r = 0.37, P < 0.05) but not body mass index or SAT. Elevated serum ALT was associated with a higher hepatic fat fraction ( P < 0.001) and VAT ( P = 0.06). Conclusion: Visceral adiposity is a risk factor for pediatric NAFLD.
Fishbein et al. (Sun,) studied this question.