VISCERAL ADIPOSITY, ANDROGENS, AND PLASMA-LIPIDS IN OBESE MEN

The primary purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships between adipose tissue (AT) distribution, particularly visceral adipose tissue (VAT), circulating androgens, and plasma lipids in a group of 17 obese (body mass index [kg/m(2)], 31.8 +/- 3.8) android (waist to hip ratio [WHR], 1.01 +/- 0.05) men. AT distribution was measured by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) using a multislice model in which 41 equidistant images were acquired from head to foot. Although the subjects were homogenous with respect to total adiposity, a sevenfold variation in VAT was observed. VAT and the visceral to subcutaneous ratio (VSR) were significantly correlated with triglyceride (TG) levels and the ratio of apolipoprotein (apo) B to low-density lipoprotein cholesterol ([LDL-C] P <.05). Neither proximal-thigh AT area nor lower-body subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT) volume was significantly related to any lipid variable. However, the ratio of visceral AT area to thigh AT area (VTH) was positively correlated with TG (P < .05) and the ratio of VAT volume to lower-body SAT volume (VLBS) was positively correlated with TG, total cholesterol (TC). LDL-C (P < .05), and apo B (P = .057). Total testosterone (TT), free testosterone (FT), and sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) were not significantly related to any of the plasma lipid variables; however, the percentage of FT (%FT) was positively correlated with high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ([HDL-C]P < .01) and HDL-C/LDL-C (P < .05). TT, FT, %FT, and SHBG were not related to MRI-measured VAT. Age was not related to either VAT or androgen levels. The observed relationships between VAT, androgens, and plasma lipids were similar regardless of whether VAT was determined using a single abdominal image (cm(2)) or a combination of seven abdominal images (cm(3)). Furthermore, the segmentation of intraperitoneal (IP) AT from VAT did not affect the observed relationships. The findings of this study suggest that in obese android men, absolute and relative measures of visceral adiposity are stronger correlates of plasma lipid variables than are circulating androgens. Copyright (C) 1994 by W.B. Saunders Company