Abdominal Subcutaneous and Visceral Adipose Thickness Are Independently Associated with Insulin Resistance

Abdominal Subcutaneous and Visceral Adipose Thickness Are Independently Associated with Insulin ResistanceView session detail Author Block: SIMONA BERTOLI, ALESSANDRO LEONE, ANGELA SPADAFRANCA, RAMONA DE AMICIS, LAILA VIGNATI, GIORGIO BEDOGNI, ALBERTO BATTEZZATI, Milan, Italy Regional fat distribution rather than overall obesity has been recognized as the link between obesity and diabetes. The measurement of abdominal subcutaneous and visceral adipose thickness (SAT and VAT) by ultrasonography (US) is simple, inexpensive and non-invasive. We have recently shown that both VAT and SAT are associated with metabolic syndrome and its components but their association with insulin resistance (IR) remains unclear. To investigate such association, we carried out a cross-sectional analysis of 4108 Caucasian adults followed as outpatients at the International Center for the Assessment of Nutritional Status (ICANS) in Milan. They were aged 18-87 years, were mostly females (71%) and had a median body mass index (BMI) of 28.7 (25.4 to 32.7). VAT and SAT were assessed by US using a validated protocol. HOMA-IR was used as surrogate index of IR. HOMA-IR was used as surrogate index of IR. 25,1% of the sample was detected to have IR (HOMA-IR > 3,6). The associations of VAT and SAT with IR was examined using multivariable linear regression with fractional polynomials. LogeHOMA was independently associated with VAT (cm), SAT0.5 (cm) and age-2 (years) but not with sex (R2 = 0.452, RMSE = 0.49) (Figure). We conclude that US-VAT and SAT are independently associated with IR in a large sample at different level of BMI.