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Multicenter Study
. 2018 Dec:279:114-121.
doi: 10.1016/j.atherosclerosis.2018.09.001. Epub 2018 Sep 8.

Associations of cardiovascular fat radiodensity and vascular calcification in midlife women: The SWAN cardiovascular fat ancillary study

Carrie Hanley  1 , Kelly J Shields  2 , Karen A Matthews  3 , Maria M Brooks  1 , Imke Janssen  4 , Matthew J Budoff  5 , Akira Sekikawa  1 , Suresh Mulukutla  6 , Samar R El Khoudary  7
Affiliations
Multicenter Study

Associations of cardiovascular fat radiodensity and vascular calcification in midlife women: The SWAN cardiovascular fat ancillary study

Carrie Hanley et al. Atherosclerosis. 2018 Dec.

Abstract

Background and aims: Fat radiodensity, measured via CT Hounsfield units (HU), is a potential marker of fat quality. We sought to determine the cross-sectional associations of total heart fat (TAT) and aortic perivascular fat (PVAT) radiodensity with cardiovascular risk factors, coronary artery calcification (CAC), and aortic calcification (AC) in midlife women.

Methods: Fat radiodensity, CAC, and AC were quantified using CT scans. A total of 528 women (mean age: 50.9 ± 2.9 years; 37% Black) were included in analyses.

Results: Women in the lowest TAT radiodensity tertile were more likely to have adverse cardiovascular risk factors. Independent of cardiovascular risk factors, women in the middle and high TAT radiodensity tertiles were less likely to have CAC (OR (95% CI): 0.32 (0.18, 0.59); 0.43 (0.24, 0.78), respectively) compared with women in the lowest TAT radiodensity tertile. Although adjusting for BMI attenuated the overall association, women in the middle TAT radiodensity tertile remained at significantly lower odds of CAC when compared to the low radiodensity tertile, 0.47 (0.24, 0.93), p=0.03. No significant associations were found for PVAT radiodensity and calcification measures in multivariable analysis.

Conclusions: Lower TAT radiodensity was associated with a less favorable cardiometabolic profile. Women with mid-range TAT radiodensity values had a lower odds of CAC presence, independent of CVD risk factors and BMI. More research is necessary to understand radiodensity as a surrogate marker of fat quality in midlife women.

Keywords: Cardiovascular; Fat radiodensity; Midlife women; Vascular calcification.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflicts of Interest

Dr. Hanley has nothing to disclose; Dr. Shields has nothing to disclose, Dr. El Khoudary reports grants from AHA, during the conduct of the study; Dr. Matthews has nothing to disclose; Dr. Brooks reports grants from Gilead Science Inc, outside the submitted work; Dr. Janssen reports grants from NIH, during the conduct of the study; Dr. Budoff reports grants from NIH, during the conduct of the study; grants from GE, outside the submitted work; Dr. Sekikawa has nothing to disclose; Dr. Mulukutla has nothing to disclose.

Figures

Figure 1:
Figure 1:
Cardiovascular fat depots: typical cross-sectional CT image including the heart (red=epicardial fat, blue=paracardial fat, yellow=pericardium) and the aorta (pink=aorta PVAT, green=anatomically oriented boundary for aorta PVAT inclusion)
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Comment in

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