The influence of anatomical boundaries, age, and sex on the assessment of abdominal visceral fat

• Published in: Obesity research 1997-09, Vol.5 (5), p.395-401
• Main Authors: Clasey, J.L, Bouchard, C, Wideman, L, Kanaley, J, Teates, C.D, Thorner, M.O, Hartman, M.L, Weltman, A
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Abdomen - anatomy & histology; ABDOMINAL FAT; Abdominal Muscles - anatomy & histology; Adipose Tissue - anatomy & histology; Adipose Tissue - diagnostic imaging; Adult; AGE; AGE DIFFERENCES; Aged; Aging; ANIMAL FATS; ANIMAL MORPHOLOGY; BIOLOGICAL DIFFERENCES; BODY COMPOSITION; computed tomography; Female; Humans; Male; MEASUREMENT; Middle Aged; REGIONAL DISTRIBUTION OF FAT; SEX; Sex Characteristics; SUBCUTANEOUS FAT; Tomography, X-Ray Computed; Viscera
• ISSN: 1071-7323; 1550-8528
• DOI: 10.1002/j.1550-8528.1997.tb00661.x

CLASEY, JODY L, CLAUDE BOUCHARD, LAURIE WIDEMAN, JILL KANALEY, C DAVID TEATES, MICHAEL O THORNER, MARK L HARTMAN, ARTHUR WELTMAN. The influence of anatomical boundaries, age, and sex on the assessment of abdominal visceral fat. Single‐slice abdominal computed tomography (CT) scanning has been used extensively for the measurement of abdominal visceral fat (AYF). Optimal anatomical scan location and pixel density ranges have been proposed and are specifically reported to allow for the replication and standardization of AVF measurements. Standardization of the anatomical boundaries for CT measurement of AVF and the influence of age and gender on results obtained with different boundary locations have received much less attention. To determine the influence of three boundary analysis methods (AVF‐1, AVF‐2, and AVF‐3) on the measurement of AVF by CT, 54 older (60 years to 79 years) and 37 younger (20 years to 29 years) healthy men and women were examined. The measurement boundary for AVF‐1 was the internal most aspect of the abdominal and oblique muscle walls, and the posterior aspect of the vertebral body. AVF‐2 used fat measurements enclosed in a boundary formed by the midpoint of the abdominal and oblique muscle walls, and the most posterior aspect of the spinous process. AVF‐3 used fat measurements enclosed in a boundary formed by the external border of the abdominal and oblique muscle walls, and the external border of the erector spinae. Greater AVF measures were obtained with AVF‐2 and AVF‐3 compared with AVF‐1 (p