Is the relationship between adipose tissue and waist girth altered by weight loss in obese men?

Objective: The aim of the present study was to examine whether the associat ion of waist girth to visceral adipose tissue (AT) accumulation was altered by weight loss in abdominally obese men. Research Methods and Procedures: We studied 45 dyslipidemic abdominally obe se men (45.4 +/- 6.2 years of age; body mass index [BMI], 31.3 +/- 3.0 kg/m (2); waist circumference, 103.4 +/- 7.6 cm; total cholesterol, <6.72 mM; tr iglycerides, greater than or equal to1.7 mM but less than or equal to5.65 m M; high density lipoprotein cholesterol, less than or equal to1.2 mM). Each of them followed nutritional recommendations combined with a prescription of gemfibrozil (1200 mg/d) or a placebo for 1 year. After 6 months, a train ing exercise program was added at a frequency of four sessions of 60 minute s per week at 50% of maximal oxygen uptake. Results: In response to the 1-year intervention program, men showed signifi cant reductions in body weight, BMI, waist circumference, and in the partia l volume of visceral and abdominal subcutaneous AT measured from two abdomi nal computed tomography scans performed at lumbar vertebra (L)2 to L3 and L 4 to L5 levels. No change in waist-to-hip ratio was observed. Changes in vi sceral AT were strongly correlated with changes in body weight, BMI, and wa ist circumference (0.83 < r < 0.85; p < 0.001). However, a weak association was noted between waist-to-hip ratio and changes in visceral AT (r = 0.40; p < 0.05). There was no change in slopes or in intercepts before and after treatment in the relationships between volume or area of abdominal AT and anthropometric markers. Discussion: Despite a greater level of the partial volume of subcutaneous A T than of the partial volume of visceral AT at baseline (p < 0.001), the gr eater relative reduction in the visceral AT volume in comparison with the s ubcutaneous AT volume suggested a preferential mobilization of visceral AT with weight loss in these abdominally obese men. The close relationship bet ween changes in the partial volume of visceral AT and changes in cross-sect ional areas of visceral AT measured at L2 to L3 (r = 0.94; p < 0.001) or L4 to L5 (r = 0.88; p < 0.001) suggests that a single computed tomography sca n performed at L2 to L3 or L4 to L5 could predict changes in the partial vo lume of visceral AT secondary to weight loss.