Preperitoneal fat thickness by ultrasonography and obesity-related disorders.
OBJECTIVE
To determine optimal cutoff values for preperitoneal fat thickness measured by ultrasonography as indicators for obesity-related disorders.


METHODS
We studied 276 men aged 60 ± 13 years and 307 women aged 64 ± 11 years. Participants were consecutively enrolled from inpatients aged ≤75 years. Demographic data were collected and maximal preperitoneal fat thickness (PFTmax) and carotid intima-media thickness were evaluated on B-mode ultrasonography. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was performed to determine optimal cutoff values for PFTmax.


RESULTS
Multiple regression analysis using one or more obesity-related disorders as an objective variable showed that the tertile on the basis of PFTmax was a significant independent contributing factor in both men and women. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis identified the cutoff points of 6.1 mm for PFTmax in men (sensitivity, 66.7%; specificity, 62.5%) and 8.7 mm for PFTmax in women (sensitivity, 56.6%; specificity, 63.6%) as discriminator values corresponding to the presence of one or more obesity-related disorders. Using the new criteria to diagnose visceral obesity, we found that adjusted carotid intima-media thickness was significantly higher in men and women with visceral obesity and two or more obesity-related disorders than in those without them.


CONCLUSIONS
These findings suggested that PFTmax measured on ultrasonography was useful in screening for indicators of cardiovascular risk factors.
Department of Internal Medicine, Seiyo Municipal Nomura Hospital, 9-53 Nomura, Nomura-cho, Seiyo-city, Ehime, 797-1212, Japan. rykawamo@ehime.med.or.jp.
Ryuichi
R
Kawamoto
Department of Internal Medicine, Seiyo Municipal Nomura Hospital, 9-53 Nomura, Nomura-cho, Seiyo-city, Ehime, 797-1212, Japan.
Nobuyuki
N
Ohtsuka
Department of Internal Medicine, Seiyo Municipal Nomura Hospital, 9-53 Nomura, Nomura-cho, Seiyo-city, Ehime, 797-1212, Japan.
Shumpei
S
Nakamura
Department of Internal Medicine, Seiyo Municipal Nomura Hospital, 9-53 Nomura, Nomura-cho, Seiyo-city, Ehime, 797-1212, Japan.
Daisuke
D
Ninomiya
Department of Internal Medicine, Seiyo Municipal Nomura Hospital, 9-53 Nomura, Nomura-cho, Seiyo-city, Ehime, 797-1212, Japan.
Ai
A
Inoue
ROC curve; atherosclerosis; risk factor; ultrasonography; visceral obesity