Original Paper

Independent Effect of Visceral Adipose Tissue on Metabolic Syndrome in Obese Adolescents
Céline Druet^{a, b}, Véronique Baltakse^c, Didier Chevenne^d, Sophie Dorgeret^e, Isabelle Zaccaria^f, Ying Wang^g, Claire Levy-Marchal<sup>a, b

a</sup>INSERM, U690;
^bUniversité Paris 7;
^cPediatric Clinic,
^dLaboratoire d'Hormonologie,
^eDepartment of Pediatric Radiology,
^fINSERM CIE 5 Unit of Clinical Epidemiology; AP-HP, and
^gClinical Investigation Unit, Hôpital Robert Debré, Paris, France

Address of Corresponding Author

Horm Res 2008;70:22-28 (DOI: 10.1159/000129674)

  Key Words

• Obesity and overweight
• Children
• Insulin resistance
• Metabolic syndrome
• Visceral fat

  Abstract

Background/Aims: Obesity is linked to metabolic complications, even in children, but the role of the distribution of adiposity is unclear. We aimed to assess which compartment of fat mass - total (TFM), visceral (VFM) or subcutaneous (SCFM) - is related to metabolic complications in overweight and obese children and adolescents. Design: Analyses were conducted in 159 overweight or obese children and adolescents (median body mass index 4.0 SD). TFM was measured by dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry. Distribution of abdominal fat was assessed by MRI. Insulin resistance (IR) was determined using a homeostatic model assessment. The definition of metabolic syndrome (MS) was derived from National Cholesterol Education Program ATP III. Results: A parental history of obesity was positively and significantly associated with fat content of the three compartments (TFM: = 2.22; VFM: = 0.17; SCFM: = 0.12, respectively). VFM was also associated with gender ( = -0.29) and ethnicity ( = -0.54). TFM was a significant and independent determinant of IR ( = 0.02) whereas IR and VFM only were significantly related to MS (OR = 3.55 and 3.66 respectively). Conclusion: Our data indicate that even in overweight children VFM was influenced by several factors such as sex and ethnicity and that a relationship was evidenced between the amount of VFM and MS.

Copyright © 2008 S. Karger AG, Basel

  Author Contacts

Céline Druet
MRC Epidemiology Unit, Institute of Metabolic Science
Addenbrooke's Hospital Box 285
Cambridge CB2 0QQ (UK)
Tel. +44 (0) 1223 769 205, Fax +44 (0) 1223 330 316, E-Mail cd403@dedschl.cam.ac.uk

  Article Information

Received: February 27, 2007
Accepted: August 3, 2007
Published online: May 21, 2008
Number of Print Pages : 7
Number of Figures : 0, Number of Tables : 4, Number of References : 38