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. 2012;88(8):454-61.
doi: 10.2183/pjab.88.454.

Intra-abdominal fat area is a predictor for new onset of individual components of metabolic syndrome: MEtabolic syndRome and abdominaL ObesiTy (MERLOT study)

Yoko M Nakao  1 , Takashi Miyawaki, Shinji Yasuno, Kazuhiro Nakao, Sachiko Tanaka, Midori Ida, Masakazu Hirata, Masato Kasahara, Kiminori Hosoda, Kenji Ueshima, Kazuwa Nakao
Affiliations

Intra-abdominal fat area is a predictor for new onset of individual components of metabolic syndrome: MEtabolic syndRome and abdominaL ObesiTy (MERLOT study)

Yoko M Nakao et al. Proc Jpn Acad Ser B Phys Biol Sci. 2012.

Abstract

Objective: To investigate the significance of intra-abdominal fat area (IAFA) on new onset of individual components of the metabolic syndrome: high blood pressure, dyslipidemia, or hyperglycemia.

Methods: We conducted a longitudinal study using checkup data of a hospital from 1994 to 2010. Of 25,255 subjects, we examined 1,380 Japanese, who underwent computed tomography to measure IAFA and had no metabolic syndrome components at baseline.

Results: During 3.6 years of the mean follow-up period, one of metabolic syndrome components occurred in 752 subjects. Of three components, high blood pressure was more prevalent. The multiple Cox regression analysis disclosed that IAFA is significantly associated with onset of metabolic syndrome components (HR: 1.05 per 10 cm(2), 95%CI: 1.03-1.07). This finding was independent of BMI, and significant even in non-obese individuals with body mass index <25 kg/m(2).

Conclusions: MERLOT study demonstrates that IAFA is an independent predictor for new onset of individual components of the metabolic syndrome, even in non-obese healthy Japanese.

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Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Study flow chart.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Correlation matrix. The Pearson's correlation coefficient between IAFA and SFA (r = 0.536 in male, r = 0.629 in female); IAFA and BMI (r = 0.600 in male, r = 0.658 in female); SFA and BMI (r = 0.792 in male, r = 0.825 in female). IAFA: intra-abdominal fat area; SFA: subcutaneous fat area; BMI: body mass index.
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
Kaplan-Meier curves for new onset of components of metabolic syndrome according to intra-abdominal fat area.
Figure 4.
Figure 4.
Relative hazard and intra-abdominal fat area. Relative hazards were calculated on the basis of female gender and baseline data including mean intra-abdominal fat area, mean systolic blood pressure, mean triglyceride, mean HDL-cholesterol, and mean HbA1c in subjects with lower quartile of intra-abdominal fat area. IAFA: intra-abdominal fat area; BMI: body mass index; CI: confidence interval.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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