Does measurement site for visceral and abdominal subcutaneous adipose tissue alter associations with the metabolic syndrome?
OBJECTIVE: To determine whether the associations between visceral adipose tissue (VAT), abdominal subcutaneous adipose tissue (ASAT), and the metabolic syndrome are altered depending on measurement site for VAT and ASAT and the definition used to identify the metabolic syndrome. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: Total VAT and ASAT volume was derived using approximately 37 contiguous computed tomography (CT) images from T10-T11 to L5-S1 in 85 men. CT images obtained at eight intervertebral locations (e.g., L4-L5, L3-L4, etc.) were used to determine the associations between partial volumes (single images) and metabolic syndrome. Metabolic syndrome was defined using the National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) and International Diabetes Federation (IDF) criteria. Logistic regression was used to calculate the odds ratio (OR) per SD increase in adipose tissue. RESULTS: For total and all partial volumes, VAT was more strongly associated with metabolic syndrome than ASAT independent of metabo
