Relation of Ectopic Fat with Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease Risk Score in South Asians Living in the United States (from the Mediators of Atherosclerosis in South Asians Living in America [MASALA] Study)

Morgana Mongraw-Chaffin*, Unjali P. Gujral, Alka M. Kanaya, Namratha R. Kandula, John Jeffrey Carr, Cheryl A.M. Anderson

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

6 Scopus citations

Abstract

Few studies have investigated the association between ectopic fat from different depots and cardiovascular risk scores and their components in the same population, and none have investigated these relations in South Asians. In a cross-sectional analysis of 796 participants in the Mediators of Atherosclerosis in South Asians Living in America (MASALA) study who had measurements of visceral, subcutaneous, pericardial, hepatic, and intermuscular fat from abdominal and cardiac computed tomography scans, we used linear regression to determine the associations of 1 standard deviation difference in each ectopic fat depot with pooled cohort risk score and its components. Pericardial and visceral fat were more strongly associated with the pooled cohort risk score (3.1%, 95% confidence interval [CI] 2.5 to 3.7, and 2.7%, 95% CI 2.1 to 3.3, respectively) and components than intermuscular fat (2.3%, 95% CI 1.7 to 3.0); subcutaneous fat was inversely associated with the pooled cohort risk score (−2.6%, 95% CI −3.2 to 1.9) and hepatic fat attenuation was not linearly associated with the pooled cohort risk score when mutually adjusted (−0.3%, 95% CI −0.9 to 0.4). Associations for risk factor components differed by fat depot. In conclusion, subcutaneous and hepatic fat may have different functions than fat stored in other depots in South Asians. Determining whether these relations are heterogeneous by race may help elucidate the mechanisms underlying CVD disparities.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)315-321
Number of pages7
JournalAmerican Journal of Cardiology
Volume121
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - Feb 1 2018

Funding

AS was supported by the National Institutes of Health (Bethesda, MD, USA) training grant 5T32DK007418-34 and the Wilsey Family Foundation (San Francisco, CA, USA). The MASALA study was supported by Grant R01HL093009 from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (Bethesda, MD, USA) and the National Center for Research Resources (Bethesda, MD, USA) and the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (Bethesda, MD, USA), National Institutes of Health , through UCSF-CTSI Grant UL1 RR024131 . The body composition measurements were supported by Grant K24HL112827. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute or the National Institutes of Health. The funders had no role in the design, analysis, or interpretation of the data, the writing of the manuscript, or the decision to submit it for publication.

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine

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