Determination of age-related changes in structure and function of skin, adipose tissue, and skeletal muscle with computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, and positron emission tomography

In this article, we report quantitative preliminary data obtained from retrospective analysis of F-18-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) and combined PET-computed tomography (PET/CT) examinations in subjects ages 3 to 84 years pertaining to changes in the metabolism of skin, subcutaneous adipose tissue, visceral adipose tissue, and skeletal muscle with age, as well as age-related changes in skeletal muscle attenuation. We also propose a new method for identifying hypermetabolic brown fat on FDG-PET. Finally, we present a review of the literature regarding reported age-related structural and functional changes that occur in skin, fat, and skeletal muscle. Using FDG-PET, We evaluated 213 subjects for changes in the metabolism of skin, adipose tissue, and skeletal muscle with aging. Thirty-two separate subjects were chosen to measure maximum standardized uptake value (SUV) of hypermetabolic brown fat on dual-time point PET imaging. Finally, 15 subjects evaluated by PET/CT were selected to measure changes in metabolism and attenuation of skeletal muscle, and changes in metabolism of adipose tissue with aging. We found that skin, fat, and skeletal muscle all demonstrate significant (P < 0.05) increases in SUV with increasing age on PET imaging. Dual-time point PET imaging demonstrates increasing FDG uptake of hypermetabolic brown fat in various regions studied. Finally, our PET/CT studies revealed statistically insignificant (P > 0.05) decreases in SUV of adipose tissue with aging and the opposite trend in skeletal muscles (P > 0.05). Skeletal muscle attenuation in the various regions studied was found to significantly decrease with age (P < 0.05). Our study shows notable trends in metabolism and attenuation of skeletal muscle and metabolism of skin and adipose tissue that occur with normal aging. We hope that the methodologies and data we present here will serve as a useful starting point for those interested in conducting future prospective research on age-related changes in these structures.