Endocrinol Metab.  2021 Aug;36(4):835-844. 10.3803/EnM.2021.1130.

Lower High-Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol Concentration Is Independently Associated with Greater Future Accumulation of Intra-Abdominal Fat

• Song SO
• Hwang YC
• Ryu HU
• Kahn SE
• Leonetti DL
• Fujimoto WY
• Boyko EJ

• KMID: 2519671
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.3803/EnM.2021.1130

Abstract

Background
Both intra-abdominal fat (IAF) and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) are known to be associated with cardiometabolic health. We evaluated whether the accumulation of computed tomography (CT)-measured IAF over 5 years was related to baseline HDL-C concentration in a prospective cohort study.
Methods
All participants were Japanese-Americans between the ages of 34 and 74 years. Plasma HDL-C concentration and CT measurements of IAF, abdominal subcutaneous fat (SCF), and thigh SCF cross-sectional areas were assessed at baseline and at 5-year follow-up visits.
Results
A total of 397 subjects without diabetes were included. The mean±standard deviation HDL-C concentration was 51.6±13.0 mg/dL in men and 66.0±17.0 mg/dL in women, and the IAF was 91.9±48.4 cm² in men and 63.1±39.5 cm² in women. The baseline plasma concentration of HDL-C was inversely associated with the change in IAF over 5 years using multivariable regression analysis with adjustment for age, sex, family history of diabetes, weight change over 5 years, and baseline measurements of body mass index, IAF, abdominal SCF, abdominal circumference, thigh SCF, and homeostatic model assessment for insulin resistance.
Conclusion
These results demonstrate that HDL-C concentration significantly predicts future accumulation of IAF over 5 years independent of age, sex, insulin sensitivity, and body composition in Japanese-American men and women without diabetes.

Keyword

Intra-abdominal fat; Cholesterol; HDL; Epidemiology; Asian Americans

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