title: Body fat, abdominal fat, and body fat distribution is related to left atrial diameter in young children.
abstract: In adults, the size of the left atria (LA) has important prognostic information. In obese adults, adolescents and children enlargement of LA have been observed. This has not been investigated on a population-based level in young children. We therefore assessed if total body fat mass (TBF), abdominal fat, and body fat distribution were related to LA diameter. Cross-sectional study of 244 children (boys = 137 and girls n = 107) aged 8-11 years, recruited from an urban population-based cohort. Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) measured total lean body mass, TBF, and abdominal fat mass (AFM). Body fat was also calculated as a percentage of body mass (BF%). Body fat distribution (AFM/TBF) was calculated. Echocardiography was performed with two-dimensional guided M-mode. LA diameter was measured and left ventricular mass (LVM) was calculated. Systolic blood pressure and diastolic blood pressure were measured and maturity assessed according to Tanner. There were significant (P < 0.05) univariate correlations for all children between TBF (r = 0.40), BF% (r = 0.32), AFM (r = 0.41), and AFM/TBF (r = 0.41) vs. LA diameter. Multiple regression analyses with the inclusion of possible confounders such as lean body mass, blood pressure, gender, age, and Tanner stage revealed that TBF, AFM, and AFM/TBF were all independently related to LA diameter. Differences in the different body fat measurements explained 6-9% of the variance in LA size. These results demonstrated that both total body fat, AFM, and body fat distribution are already at a young age negatively and independently associated to LA diameter.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Sciences, Unit of Clinical Physiology and Nuclear Medicine, Skåne University Hospital, Lund University, Malmö, Sweden. magnus.dencker@skane.se
authors.forename: Magnus
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Dencker
authors.forename: Ola
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Thorsson
authors.forename: Magnus K
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Karlsson
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lindén
authors.forename: Lars B
authors.initials: LB
authors.lastname: Andersen
authors.forename: Per
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Wollmer
mesh_terms: D050153:Abdominal Fat / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology*; D015502:Absorptiometry, Photon; D001823:Body Composition; D050218:Body Fat Distribution; D015992:Body Mass Index; D002648:Child; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004452:Echocardiography; D005260:Female; D006325:Heart Atria / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009765:Obesity / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000473:pathology*; D013548:Sweden / Q000453:epidemiology