# Associations between cardiac adipose tissue and abdominal visceral fat and muscle based on computed tomography area and density

## TL;DR

This study finds strong links between heart fat and belly fat, as well as muscle, using CT scans from 842 patients.

## Contribution

The study reveals systematic associations between cardiac and abdominal body composition parameters using CT-derived metrics.

## Key findings

- CAT area strongly correlates with visceral adipose tissue area (R = .755).
- Skeletal muscle area shows modest positive correlations with VAT and CAT areas.
- No gender differences were found in the strength of these correlations.

## Abstract

Computed Tomography (CT)-derived body composition parameters of cardiac adipose tissue (CAT), as well as abdominal adipose and muscle tissue are surrogates for the patient’s clinical condition and have prognostic implications. However, associations between the compositions of these diverse tissue compartments remain poorly investigated. This study aimed to investigate the associations between CT-derived parameters of CAT and abdominal adipose and muscle tissues. Retrospective analysis of CT scans from 842 patients was conducted, with measurements of CAT taken at the aortic valve level and abdominal tissues assessed at the L3/L4 intervertebral disc space. Area and density were calculated for each tissue compartment using single-slice images. Strong positive correlations were found between CAT area and visceral adipose tissue (VAT) area (R = .755, P < .001), as well as moderate correlations between CAT density and VAT density (R = .521, P < .001). Additionally, skeletal muscle (SM) area exhibited modest positive correlations with VAT area (R = .370, P < .001), CAT area (R = .300, P < .001), and SM density (R = .356, P < .001). No significant differences were observed between genders in the correlation strengths of these associations. These findings indicate a systematic pattern of body composition alterations, advocating for the inclusion of comprehensive body composition analysis in future studies and emphasizing the need for a deeper understanding of the underlying systemic processes influencing body composition.