title: Abdominal Visceral to Subcutaneous Adipose Tissue Ratio Is Associated with Increased Risk of Erosive Esophagitis.
abstract: To investigate the association between abdominal fat distribution represented by the visceral fat area (VFA) to subcutaneous fat area (SFA) ratio, and erosive esophagitis (EE).
  
  
  
  Seven hundred and twenty-eight participants aged >40 years underwent physical examination, blood tests, esophagogastroduodenoscopy, and abdominal computer tomography at Chung-Ang University Hospital from 2007 to 2012.
  
  
  
  Of 728 subjects, 65 (8.9%) had EE. The EE patients had higher body mass index, metabolic syndrome prevalence, triglyceride levels, and blood pressure (P < 0.05). The mean VFA/SFA ratio was higher in the EE group than in the non-EE group (1.30 vs. 0.92, P < 0.001). The predominance of EE in the group with higher VFA/SFA ratio was higher than in the group with lower VFA/SFA ratio (P < 0.001). A VFA/SFA ratio ≥1.165 had good accuracy to predict EE (area under the receiver-operating characteristic curve, 0.643). The VFA/SFA ratio and visceral fat volume were positively correlated with the severity of EE (P = 0.002), and a VFA/SFA ratio ≥1.165 was strongly correlated with the severity of EE (P < 0.001).
  
  
  
  The high VFA/SFA ratio can be a useful clinical predictor of EE.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Chung-Ang University Hospital, Chung-Ang University College of Medicine, 102 Heukseok-ro, Dongjak-gu, Seoul, 06973, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Eun Young
authors.initials: EY
authors.lastname: Ze
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Chung-Ang University Hospital, Chung-Ang University College of Medicine, 102 Heukseok-ro, Dongjak-gu, Seoul, 06973, Republic of Korea. kimbj@cau.ac.kr.
authors.forename: Beom Jin
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-0938-6697
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, Chung-Ang University Hospital, Chung-Ang University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Hyun
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kang
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Chung-Ang University Hospital, Chung-Ang University College of Medicine, 102 Heukseok-ro, Dongjak-gu, Seoul, 06973, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Jae Gyu
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Kim
mesh_terms: D050153:Abdominal Fat / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D000328:Adult; D001823:Body Composition; D004942:Esophagitis, Peptic / Q000209:etiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity / Q000150:complications*; D012307:Risk Factors; D050507:Subcutaneous Fat, Abdominal / Q000033:anatomy & histology; D014781:Viscera / Q000033:anatomy & histology*
keywords: Erosive esophagitis; Gastroesophageal reflux disease; Subcutaneous fat area; Visceral fat area