Renal manifestations and visceral adiposity in apparently healthy Korean women

Abstract

AIMS: It was the aim of this study to investigate the relationship between normal renal function--estimated glomerular filtration rate (GFR)--and visceral adiposity measured by CT in apparently healthy Korean women.

METHODS: A total of 425 apparently healthy women were recruited. We assessed body composition with CT and divided the study population into 2 groups based on fat distribution: the visceral fat dominant group and the subcutaneous fat dominant group. GFR was estimated using the abbreviated Modification of Diet in Renal Disease and quadratic equation.

RESULTS: After adjustment for age, mean blood pressure, body mass index, fasting glucose, homeostasis model assessment of the insulin resistance index, triglyceride, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein levels, and mean brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity, the visceral fat dominant group showed significantly lower GFR levels compared with the subcutaneous fat dominant group. The GFR level was negatively correlated with visceral fat areas after adjustment for age. By stepwise multiple regression analysis, age, triglyceride and visceral fat areas independently affected GFR levels.

CONCLUSION: Our study shows that even in apparently healthy women, visceral fat seems to be an important contributor to renal impairment. Further studies on the causality between visceral adiposity and renal function are warranted.