Longitudinal patterns of abdominal visceral and subcutaneous adipose tissue, total body composition, and anthropometric measures in postmenopausal women: Results from the Women’s Health Initiative
Authors' conclusion
These results demonstrate differences in VAT and SAT according to age, race/ethnicity, time since menopause, and compared to standard measures of body composition in a large and diverse cohort of postmenopausal women.
Study context
- Population
- Postmenopausal women in the Women's Health Initiative (WHI), US, with DXA scans in the 1990s
- Participants
- 10,184 women
- Exposure
- Non-Hispanic White vs Non-Hispanic Black vs Hispanic
- Non-Hispanic Whiten = 7,828
- Non-Hispanic Blackn = 1,423
- Hispanicn = 703
- Outcome
- Longitudinal patterns of change in abdominal adipose tissue (VAT and SAT), overall and by age, race/ethnicity and years since menopause
- Follow-up
- 6 years
Methodological detailslongitudinal, re-analysis of archived DXA scans
- Longitudinal
- Re-analysis of archived DXA scans
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
6 years
- Important differences in VAT and SAT by age and race/ethnicity
- Women <60 years: VAT increased over follow-up
- Women ≥70 years: VAT decreased
- Non-Hispanic Black women had the highest SAT levels
- Hispanic women had the highest VAT levels
- Women >10 years since menopause had less SAT, more VAT and a higher VAT/SAT ratio than women <10 years since menopause
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Further findings
- Moderate to strong correlation between abdominal adipose tissue and anthropometric measures of body size
- Substantial differences in VAT and SAT quantity within BMI and waist circumference categories
Original publication
Longitudinal patterns of abdominal visceral and subcutaneous adipose tissue, total body composition, and anthropometric measures in postmenopausal women: Results from the Women’s Health Initiative. Int J Obes (Lond). Published 4 February 2023. doi:10.
Composed by AI from the published abstract and checked against it. How Briefs are made →