Change of Computed Tomography-Based Body Composition after Adrenalectomy in Patients with Pheochromocytoma

Despite the potential biological importance of the sympathetic nervous system on fat and skeletal muscle metabolism in animal and in vitro studies, its relevance in humans remains undetermined. To clarify the influence of catecholamine excess on human body composition, we performed a retrospective l...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Cancers 2022-04, Vol.14 (8), p.1967
Main Authors: Ko, Yousun, Jeong, Heeryoel, Khang, Seungwoo, Lee, Jeongjin, Kim, Kyung Won, Kim, Beom-Jun
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Abdomen
Adipose tissue
Adrenalectomy
Body composition
Body mass index
Catecholamines
Computed tomography
Fat metabolism
Hyperactivity
Lipolysis
Medical imaging
Metabolites
Musculoskeletal system
Obesity
Patients
Pheochromocytoma
Plasma
Regression analysis
Sarcopenia
Skeletal muscle
Software
Surgery
Sympathetic nervous system
Tomography
Urine
Vertebrae
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Summary:Despite the potential biological importance of the sympathetic nervous system on fat and skeletal muscle metabolism in animal and in vitro studies, its relevance in humans remains undetermined. To clarify the influence of catecholamine excess on human body composition, we performed a retrospective longitudinal cohort study including 313 consecutive patients with histologically confirmed pheochromocytoma who underwent repeat abdominal computed tomography (CT) scans before and after adrenalectomy. Changes in CT-determined visceral fat area (VFA), subcutaneous fat area (SFA), skeletal muscle area (SMA), and skeletal muscle index (SMI) were measured at the level of the third lumbar vertebra. The mean age of all patients was 50.6 ± 13.6 years, and 171/313 (54.6%) were women. The median follow-up duration for repeat CTs was 25.0 months. VFA and SFA were 14.5% and 15.8% higher, respectively (both p < 0.001), after adrenalectomy, whereas SMA and SMI remained unchanged. Similarly, patients with visceral obesity significantly increased from 103 (32.9%) at baseline to 138 (44.1%) following surgery (p < 0.001); however, the prevalence of sarcopenia was unchanged. This study provides important clinical evidence that sympathetic hyperactivity can contribute to lipolysis in visceral and subcutaneous adipose tissues, but its impact on human skeletal muscle is unclear.
ISSN:2072-6694
2072-6694
DOI:10.3390/cancers14081967