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Abdominal and Gynoid Fat Mass Are Associated with Cardiovascular Risk Factors in Men and Women

Departments of Surgical and Perioperative Sciences (P.W., F.T., A.N., P.N.), Sports Medicine; Department of Community Medicine and Rehabilitation (P.W., F.T., A.N.), Rehabilitation Medicine; Department of Community Medicine and Rehabilitation (P.W., F.T., P.N.), Geriatric Medicine; Department of Public Health and Clinical Medicine (L.W.), Epidemiology and Public Health Sciences; Department of Public Health and Clinical Medicine (G.H.), Nutritional Research; and Department of Public Health and Clinical Medicine (P.W.F.), Medicine, Umeå University, 90185 Umeå, Sweden

Address all correspondence and requests for reprints to: Peter Nordström, M.D., Ph.D., Department of Community Medicine and Rehabilitation, Umeå University, 90185 Umeå, Sweden. E-mail: peter.nordstrom{at}idrott.umu.se.

Context: Abdominal obesity is an established risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD). However, the correlation of dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) measurements of regional fat mass with CVD risk factors has not been completely investigated.

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the association of estimated regional fat mass, measured with DEXA and CVD risk factors.

Design, Setting, and Participants: This was a cross-sectional study of 175 men and 417 women. DEXA measurements of regional fat mass were performed on all subjects, who subsequently participated in a community intervention program.

Main Outcome Measures: Outcome measures included impaired glucose tolerance, hypercholesterolemia, hypertriglyceridemia, and hypertension.

Results: We began by assessing the associations of the adipose measures with the cardiovascular outcomes. After adjustment for confounders, a SD unit increase in abdominal fat mass was the strongest predictor of most cardiovascular variables in men [odds ratio (OR) = 2.63–3.37; P < 0.05], whereas the ratio of abdominal to gynoid fat mass was the strongest predictor in women (OR = 1.48–2.19; P < 0.05). Gynoid fat mass was positively associated with impaired glucose tolerance, hypertriglyceridemia, and hypertension in men (OR = 2.07–2.15; P < 0.05), whereas the ratio of gynoid to total fat mass showed a negative association with hypertriglyceridemia and hypertension (OR = 0.42–0.62; P < 0.005).

Conclusions: Abdominal fat mass is strongly independently associated with CVD risk factors in the present study. In contrast, gynoid fat mass was positively associated, whereas the ratio of gynoid to total fat mass was negatively associated with risk factors for CVD.

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