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Biomedical subjects

S Sidney

Publications and source records attributed to S Sidney.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Midlife cardiovascular risk factors and risk of dementia in late life.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate if midlife cardiovascular risk factors are associated with risk of late-life dementia in a large, diverse cohort. METHOD: The authors conducted a retrospective cohort study of 8,845 participants of a health maintenance organization who underwent health evaluations from 1964 to 1973 when they were between the ages of 40 and 44. Midlife cardiovascular risk factors included total cholesterol, diabetes, hypertension, and smoking. Diagnoses of dementia were ascertained by medical records from January 1994 to April 2003. RESULTS: The authors identified 721 participants (8.2%) with dementia. Smoking, hypertension, high cholesterol, and diabetes at midlife were each associated with a 20 to 40% increase in risk of dementia (fully adjusted Cox proportional hazards model: HR 1.24, 95% CI 1.04 to 1.48 for hypertension, HR 1.26, 95% CI 1.08 to 1.47 for smoking, HR 1.42, 95% CI 1.22 to 1.66 for high cholesterol, and HR 1.46, 95% CI 1.19 to 1.79 for diabetes). A composite cardiovascular risk score was created using all four risk factors and was associated with dementia in a dose-dependent fashion. Compared with participants having no risk factors, the risk for dementia increased from 1.27 for having one risk factor to 2.37 for having all four risk factors (fully adjusted model: HR 2.37, 95% CI 1.10 to 5.10). CONCLUSION: The presence of multiple cardiovascular risk factors at midlife substantially increases risk of late-life dementia in a dose dependent manner.

Adult↗

Excess gains in weight and waist circumference associated with childbearing: The Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults Study (CARDIA).

OBJECTIVE: To examine the association of childbearing with weight and waist circumference (WC) changes, we compared women with and without pregnancies or births during follow-up. STUDY DESIGN: A multicenter, longitudinal observational study over 10 years. Comparison groups defined by the number of pregnancies and births during follow-up: P0 (0 pregnancies; nongravid), P1 (1+ miscarriages or abortions; 'short' pregnancies), B1 (1 birth), and B2 (2+ births). Mean changes in weight and WC for P1, B1 and B2 groups vs P0 were examined separately by race (black and white), baseline parity (nulliparous and parous) and baseline weight status (normal weight; BMI <25 kg/m(2) and overweight; BMI >/=25 kg/m(2)). SUBJECTS: A population-based sample of 2070 women aged 18-30 y at baseline (1053 black subjects and 1017 white subjects) from Birmingham, Alabama, Chicago, Illinois, Minneapolis, Minnesota, and Oakland, California were examined five times between 1985-1986 and 1995-1996. MEASUREMENTS: Weight and WC measurements were obtained using standardized protocol at baseline and examinations at years 2, 5, 7 and 10. Sociodemographic, reproductive, and behavioral attributes were assessed at baseline and follow-up examinations. RESULTS: Gains in weight and WC associated with pregnancy and childbearing varied by race (P<0.001), baseline parity (P<0.05) and overweight status (P<0.001). Among overweight nulliparas, excess gains in weight (black subjects: 3-5 kg, white subjects: 5-6 kg) and WC (black subjects: 3-4 cm, white subjects: 5-6 cm) were associated with 'short' pregnancies and one or more birth(s) during follow-up compared to no pregnancies (P<0.01 and 0.001). Among normal weight nulliparas, excess gains in weight (about 1 kg) and WC (2-3 cm) were associated with follow-up birth(s) (P<0.05). Among women parous at baseline, no excess weight gains were found, but excess WC gains (2-4 cm) were associated with follow-up births. CONCLUSION: Substantial excess weight gain is associated with both short pregnancies and a first birth in women overweight prior to initiation of childbearing. Excess weight gain was not associated with higher order births. Increases in waist girth were cumulative with both first and higher order births among overweight as well as normal weight women. Interventions to prevent obesity should be targeted at women who are overweight prior to initiation of childbearing. The impact of excess WC gains associated with childbearing on women's future health risk should be evaluated further.

Adolescent↗

Oral contraceptives and bone mineral density in white and black women in CARDIA. Coronary Risk Development in Young Adults.

To examine whether exposure to oral contraceptives (OCs) is associated with bone mineral density (BMD) in young women, we studied, cross-sectionally and longitudinally, 216 white and 260 black women enrolled in the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) study. Spine, hip and whole body BMDs were measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) when the women were aged 25-37 years, and whole body BMD was remeasured in 369 of the women 3 years later. A comprehensive history of OC use, including dose of ethinyl estradiol (estrogen) and duration of use, was determined from an interviewer-administered questionnaire. After adjustment for other relevant variables, we found that cumulative estrogen from OCs (mg) explained 4.0% of the variation in spine BMD ( p = 0.024) among white women, but did not explain any of the variance in BMD in black women. Cumulative OC estrogen was associated with a decreased risk for low bone density (lowest quartile) at the spine, hip and whole body in white women. The odds ratios (95% CIs) comparing women in the highest quartile of cumulative OC estrogen with those in the lowest quartile were, at the spine: 0.08 (0.02, 0.46); at the hip: 0.23 (0.06, 0.87); and at the whole body: 0.37 (0.11, 1.26). OC exposure was not related to low bone density in black women. OCs did not predict longitudinal changes in whole body BMD in either race. These results suggest that exposure to the estrogen from OCs during the premenopausal years may have a small beneficial effect on the skeleton in white women. Benefit is proportional to the cumulative estrogen exposure, suggesting that previous cross-sectional studies that considered OC use as a dichotomous variable may have lacked the power to detect an association.

Adult↗

Glycemic control and heart failure among adult patients with diabetes.

BACKGROUND: Glycemic control is associated with microvascular events, but its effect on the risk of heart failure is not well understood. We examined the association between hemoglobin (Hb) A(Ic) and the risk of heart failure hospitalization and/or death in a population-based sample of adult patients with diabetes and assessed whether this association differed by patient sex, heart failure pathogenesis, and hypertension status. METHODS AND RESULTS: A cohort design was used with baseline between January 1, 1995, and June 30, 1996, and follow-up through December 31, 1997 (median 2.2 years). Participants were 25 958 men and 22 900 women with (predominantly type 2) diabetes, >/=19 years old, with no known history of heart failure. There were a total of 935 events (516 among men; 419 among women). After adjustment for age, sex, race/ethnicity, education level, cigarette smoking, alcohol consumption, hypertension, obesity, use of beta-blockers and ACE inhibitors, type and duration of diabetes, and incidence of interim myocardial infarction, each 1% increase in Hb A(Ic) was associated with an 8% increased risk of heart failure (95% CI 5% to 12%). An Hb A(Ic) >/=10, relative to Hb A(Ic) <7, was associated with 1.56-fold (95% CI 1.26 to 1.93) greater risk of heart failure. Although the association was stronger in men than in women, no differences existed by heart failure pathogenesis or hypertension status. CONCLUSIONS: These results confirm previous evidence that poor glycemic control may be associated with an increased risk of heart failure among adult patients with diabetes.

Age Factors↗

Prevalence and correlates of coronary calcification in black and white young adults: the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) Study.

Whereas cardiovascular risk factor levels are substantially different in black and white Americans, the relative rates of cardiovascular disease in the 2 groups are not always consistent with these differences. To compare the prevalence of coronary calcification, an indicator of coronary atherosclerosis, in young adult blacks and whites, we performed electron-beam computed tomography of the heart in 443 men and women aged 28 to 40 years recruited from a population-based cohort. The presence of calcium, defined as at least 1 focus of at least 2.05 mm(2) in area and >130 Hounsfield units in density within the coronary arteries, was identified in 16.1% of black men, 11.8% of black women, 17.1% of white men, and 4.6% of white women (P=0.04 for comparison across groups). Coronary calcium was associated with age and male sex, and after adjustment for age, race, and sex, coronary calcium was positively associated with body mass index, weight, systolic blood pressure, total cholesterol, low density lipoprotein cholesterol, triglycerides, and fasting insulin and negatively associated with education (all P<0.05). Independent risk factors included male sex, body mass index, and low density lipoprotein cholesterol. Race was not significantly associated with coronary calcium in men or women, before or after adjustment for risk factors. Coronary calcification is associated with increased levels of cardiovascular risk factors in young adults, and its prevalence is not significantly different in blacks and whites.

Adult↗

Short-term prognosis after emergency department diagnosis of TIA.

CONTEXT: Management of patients with acute transient ischemic attack (TIA) varies widely, with some institutions admitting all patients and others proceeding with outpatient evaluations. Defining the short-term prognosis and risk factors for stroke after TIA may provide guidance in determining which patients need rapid evaluation. OBJECTIVE: To determine the short-term risk of stroke and other adverse events after emergency department (ED) diagnosis of TIA. DESIGN AND SETTING: Cohort study conducted from March 1997 through February 1998 in 16 hospitals in a health maintenance organization in northern California. Patients A total of 1707 patients (mean age, 72 years) identified by ED physicians as having presented with TIA. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Risk of stroke during the 90 days after index TIA; other events, including death, recurrent TIA, and hospitalization for cardiovascular events. RESULTS: During the 90 days after index TIA, 180 patients (10.5%) returned to the ED with a stroke, 91 of which occurred in the first 2 days. Five factors were independently associated with stroke: age greater than 60 years (odds ratio [OR], 1.8; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.1-2.7; P=.01), diabetes mellitus (OR, 2.0; 95% CI, 1.4-2.9; P<.001), symptom duration longer than 10 minutes (OR, 2.3; 95% CI, 1.3-4.2; P=.005), weakness (OR, 1.9; 95% CI, 1.4-2.6; P<.001), and speech impairment (OR, 1.5; 95% CI, 1.1-2.1; P=.01). Stroke or other adverse events occurred in 428 patients (25.1%) in the 90 days after the TIA and included 44 hospitalizations for cardiovascular events (2.6%), 45 deaths (2.6%), and 216 recurrent TIAs (12.7%). CONCLUSIONS: Our results indicate that the short-term risk of stroke and other adverse events among patients who present to an ED with a TIA is substantial. Characteristics of the patient and the TIA may be useful for identifying patients who may benefit from expeditious evaluation and treatment.

Aged↗

Calcification of the aortic arch: risk factors and association with coronary heart disease, stroke, and peripheral vascular disease.

CONTEXT: Calcium deposits in coronary and extracoronary arterial beds may indicate the extent of atherosclerosis. However, the incremental predictive value of vascular calcification, beyond traditional coronary risk factors, is not clearly established. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate risk factors for aortic arch calcification and its long-term association with cardiovascular diseases in a population-based sample. DESIGN AND SETTING: Cohort study conducted at a health maintenance organization in northern California. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 60,393 women and 55,916 men, aged 30 to 89 years at baseline who attended multiphasic health checkups between 1964 and 1973 and for whom incidence of hospitalizations and/or mortality data were ascertained using discharge diagnosis codes and death records through December 31, 1997 (median follow-up, 28 years). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Hospitalization for or death due to coronary heart disease, ischemic stroke, hemorrhagic stroke, or peripheral vascular disease, as associated with aortic arch calcification found on chest radiograph at checkup from 1964-1973. RESULTS: Aortic arch calcification was present in 1.9% of men and 2.6% of women. It was independently associated with older age, no college education, current smoking, and hypertension in both sexes, but it was inversely related to body mass index and family history of myocardial infarction. In women, aortic arch calcification was also associated with black race and elevated serum cholesterol level. After adjustment for age, educational attainment, race/ethnicity, cigarette smoking, alcohol consumption, body mass index, serum cholesterol level, hypertension, diabetes, and family history of myocardial infarction, aortic arch calcification was associated with an increased risk of coronary heart disease (in men, relative risk [RR], 1.27; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.11-1.45; in women, RR, 1. 22; 95% CI, 1.07-1.38). Among women, it was also independently associated with a 1.46-fold increased risk of ischemic stroke (95% CI, 1.28-1.67). CONCLUSION: In our population-based cohort, aortic arch calcification was independently related to coronary heart disease risk in both sexes as well as to ischemic stroke risk in women. JAMA. 2000;283:2810-2815

Adult↗

Association of hostility with coronary artery calcification in young adults: the CARDIA study. Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults.

CONTEXT: Psychosocial factors, including personality and character traits, may play a role in the development and expression of coronary artery disease. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate whether hostility, a previously reported predictor of clinical coronary artery disease, is associated with coronary calcification, which is a marker of subclinical atherosclerosis. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: Volunteer subsample from Chicago, Ill, and Oakland, Calif, consisting of 374 white and black men and women, aged 18 to 30 years at baseline, who participated in the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) study. Cook-Medley hostility assessment data were collected at baseline from 1985 to 1986 and at year 5 examinations from 1990 to 1992. After the 10-year examinations in the 1995-1996 year, electron-beam computed tomographic scans were performed. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Presence of any detectable coronary artery calcification (coronary calcium score >0), and coronary artery calcium scores of 20 or higher. RESULTS: In logistic regression analysis adjusting for age, sex, race, and field center comparing those with hostility scores above and below the median of the distribution of the present sample, the odds ratio of having any coronary calcification was 2.57 (95% confidence interval, 1.31-5.22), and the odds ratio of having a calcium score of 20 or higher was 9.56 (95% confidence interval, 2.29-65.9) for calcium scores of 20 or higher. The associations with any coronary artery calcification persisted after adjusting for demographic, lifestyle, and physiological variables. Results using a cynical distrust subscale were somewhat weaker than for those using the global hostility score. Power was inadequate to perform sex- or race-specific analyses. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that a high hostility level may predispose young adults to coronary artery calcification. JAMA. 2000;283:2546-2551

Adult↗

Hospitalization for suicide attempt and completed suicide: epidemiological features in a managed care population.

BACKGROUND: Understanding factors that contribute to high suicide risk holds important implications for prevention. We aimed to examine the sociodemographic and medical predictors of attempted suicide (severe enough to require hospitalization) and of completed suicide in a large population-based sample from a health maintenance organization (HMO) in northern California, USA. METHOD: We designed a cohort study, including 87,257 women and 70,570 men aged 15 through 89 years old at baseline (in 1977-1985) with follow-up for hospitalizations and mortality through the end of 1993. RESULTS: After a median of 10 years, 169 first hospitalizations for attempted suicide (111 among women, 58 among men) and 319 completed suicides (101 among women, 218 among men) were identified. There was a greater incidence of hospitalization for suicide attempt in women than in men and, conversely, a greater incidence of completed suicide in men than in women. The predominant methods of attempted and completed suicides were ingestion of psychotropic agents and use of firearms, respectively. In gender-specific multivariate analysis of hospitalization for suicide attempt, statistically significant associations were seen for age 15-24 years (women), 65-89 years (men), white race (women), 12th grade or less education (both genders), technical/business school education (men), never being married (men), history of emotional problems (both genders), history of family problems (women), history of job problems (men) and presence of one or more comorbidities (men). The independent predictors of completed suicide were: age 15-24 years (both genders), Asian race (women), Caucasian race (both genders), never being married (both genders), being separated/divorced (women), prior inpatient hospitalization for suicide attempt (both genders) and history of emotional problems (both genders). CONCLUSION: These findings could help health professionals be more effective in the prevention of suicide morbidity and mortality.

Adolescent↗

Hormone replacement therapy and the risk of myocardial infarction in women with coronary risk factors.

To assess the risk of myocardial infarction in users of post-menopausal hormone replacement therapy who are at high risk of coronary disease because of hypertension, diabetes mellitus, or smoking, we used data from a previously published case-control study of women 45-74 years. After adjustment for age, ethnicity, and education, the odds ratio for myocardial infarction in current users of hormone replacement therapy was 0.9 (95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.5-1.6) in women with no major coronary risk factors, 0.8 (95% CI = 0.5-1.8) in women with one risk factor, and 1.1 (95% CI = 0.5-2.2) in women with two risk factors.

Aged↗

Cigarette smoking, alcohol consumption, and risk of ARDS: a 15-year cohort study in a managed care setting.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To examine the association of cigarette smoking and alcohol consumption with hospital presentation of ARDS in a well-defined, multiethnic population. DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study. SETTING: Health maintenance organization in Northern California. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 121,012 health plan subscribers (54.2% women), aged 25 to 89 years. OUTCOME MEASURE: Hospital presentation of ARDS (validated by medical chart review) from baseline in 1979 to 1985 through the end of 1993 (median, 9.9 years). RESULTS: There were 56 cases of ARDS (33 in men, 23 in women). The case fatality rate was 39% in both genders. ARDS was independently related to increasing age (rate ratio of 10 years, 1.38; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.12 to 1.71), to current smoking of < 20 cigarettes/d (rate ratio vs never cigarette smokers, 2.85; 95% CI, 1. 23 to 6.60), and to current cigarette smoking of > or = 20 cigarettes/d (rate ratio vs never smokers, 4.59; 95% CI, 2.13 to 9.88). No association was observed between alcohol consumption and ARDS. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study suggest a relationship (with evidence of dose-response effect) between cigarette smoking and ARDS. Assuming a causal relationship, approximately 50% of ARDS cases were attributable to cigarette smoking.

Adult↗

Changes in US health care access in the 90s: race and income differences from the CARDIA Study. Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults.

OBJECTIVE: Health care financing is changing rapidly in the United States. We investigated whether and how health care access is changing concurrently with changes in financing, with special attention to a minority population. METHODS: We examined a longitudinal biracial (half African-American, half White) urban cohort of 3,565 individuals, aged 25-37 years old, in 1992-93 and again in 1995-96. We measured access by self-reported (1) health insurance status, (2) regular source of medical care, and (3) lack of care due to financial problems. RESULTS: In 1992-93, 30.3% of the cohort experienced at least one access barrier, with a decline to 26.8% in 1995-96 (P<.005). However, access improved more for Whites than for African Americans; and access improved for higher, but not for lower, income groups (7% improvement for high income, vs 2% deterioration for lower income, P<.01). In addition, there was an 11% to 19% absolute increase in individuals making co-payments for health care utilization across all race/sex groups, with African Americans having markedly higher proportions of cost-sharing. African-American, low income, and unemployed individuals reported more acute care, but fewer outpatient visits. Income and employment explained racial differences. CONCLUSION: While access has improved or stabilized for higher income groups, there is a widening gap according to income, accompanied by an acute care pattern for low income groups that may be both inadequate and cost inefficient.

Adolescent↗

Effect of cigar smoking on the risk of cardiovascular disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and cancer in men.

BACKGROUND: The sale of cigars in the United States has been increasing for the past six years. Cigar smoking is a known risk factor for certain cancers and for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). However, unlike the relation between cigarette smoking and cardiovascular disease, the association between cigar smoking and cardiovascular disease has not been clearly established. METHODS: We performed a cohort study among 17,774 men 30 to 85 years of age at base line (from 1964 through 1973) who were enrolled in the Kaiser Permanente health plan and who reported that they had never smoked cigarettes and did not currently smoke a pipe. Those who smoked cigars (1546 men) and those who did not (16,228) were followed from 1971 through the end of 1995 for a first hospitalization for or death from a major cardiovascular disease or COPD, and through the end of 1996 for a diagnosis of cancer. RESULTS: In multivariate analysis, cigar smokers, as compared with nonsmokers, were at higher risk for coronary heart disease (relative risk, 1.27; 95 percent confidence interval, 1.12 to 1.45), COPD (relative risk, 1.45; 95 percent confidence interval, 1.10 to 1.91), and cancers of the upper aerodigestive tract (relative risk, 2.02; 95 percent confidence interval, 1.01 to 4.06) and lung (relative risk, 2.14; 95 percent confidence interval, 1.12 to 4.11), with evidence of dose-response effects. There appeared to be a synergistic relation between cigar smoking and alcohol consumption with respect to the risk of oropharyngeal cancers and cancers of the upper aerodigestive tract. CONCLUSIONS: Independently of other risk factors, regular cigar smoking can increase the risk of coronary heart disease, COPD, and cancers of the upper aerodigestive tract and lung.

Adult↗

Association of total and central adiposity measures with fasting insulin in a biracial population of young adults with normal glucose tolerance: the CARDIA study.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the association of computed tomography (CT)-measured visceral adipose tissue (AT) and other measures of adiposity with fasting insulin in a biracial (African American and Caucasian) study population of young adults. RESEARCH METHODS AND PROCEDURES: The study population consisted of 251 young adults with normal glucose tolerance (NGT), ages 28-40 years, who were volunteers from the Birmingham, Alabama, and Oakland, California centers of the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) study. RESULTS: In regression models with total adiposity measures (body mass index or dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry-measured percent fat), visceral AT (measured as a cross-sectional area in cm2) was generally a stronger predictor of insulin than overall adiposity in all race/gender groups (partial correlation coefficients ranging from 0.31 to 0.47) except for black men, in whom the associations were nonsignificant. Partial correlation coefficients between waist circumference and insulin, controlling for percent fat, were nearly identical to those between visceral AT and insulin in women and in white men. Analyses performed on 2060 NGT CARDIA subjects who were not in this study of visceral AT showed significant correlations of waist circumference with insulin in all race/gender groups, including black men, and that black men in the visceral AT study group were significantly leaner than other black male CARDIA subjects. DISCUSSION: We conclude that visceral AT was associated with fasting insulin in NGT participants in three of the four race/gender groups (black men excepted) and that waist circumference was a good surrogate for visceral AT in examining associations of central adiposity with fasting insulin.

Absorptiometry, Photon↗

Seven-year changes in physical fitness, physical activity, and lipid profile in the CARDIA study. Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults.

PURPOSE: To relate seven year changes in physical fitness and physical activity in the young adult population to changes in the plasma lipid profile and to examine the influence of weight change on those relationships. METHODS: The participants in this observational study were the 1777 black and white men and women, ages 18-30 at entry into the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) cohort, who completed a symptom-limited graded treadmill exercise test and had an overnight fasting blood draw at both the Baseline (1985-86) and Year 7 (1992-93) exams. CARDIA, a longitudinal study of the relationships of lifestyle and physiological variables to the development of coronary heart disease risk factors, consists of population-based cohorts in Birmingham, Alabama, Minneapolis, Minnesota and Chicago, Illinois and a cohort recruited from the membership of a large, pre-paid health care plan, broadly representative of the population, in Oakland, California. RESULTS: All race/gender groups experienced mean decreases in physical fitness and self-reported physical activity and increases in weight. Decreased fitness was associated with decreased high density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C), and conversely, increased fitness was associated with increased HDL-C. The correlation coefficients of change in fitness with change in HDL-C ranged from 0.17 in white men and black women to 0.24 in white women (P < 0.001 for all race/gender groups). Change in fitness was minimally correlated with change in low density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C) in all groups (r ranged from -0.09 in black women to -0.20 in white women), triglycerides (TG) in men and white women (r ranged from -0.10 to -0.15), and total cholesterol (TC) in white men and women (r = -0.11 and -0.15, respectively). The magnitude of these correlations was further reduced with adjustment for weight change. Correlations between change in activity and change in lipid and lipoprotein values were generally weak or nonexistent, except for the suggestion of a small, direct relationship with change in HDL-C in black and white women (r = 0.14 and r = 0.11, respectively). All of the weight change adjusted correlations were essentially unaffected by further adjustment for baseline fitness or activity and other covariates. CONCLUSIONS: Decreased fitness during young adulthood is associated with unfavorable changes in lipid profile, explained mostly by increased weight. Lack of association between change in activity and change in lipid profile observed in this study may be due, in part, to imprecision of activity measurement.

Adolescent↗

Racial differences in amounts of visceral adipose tissue in young adults: the CARDIA (Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults) study.

BACKGROUND: In several white populations, visceral adipose tissue (VAT) is a risk factor for development of type 2 diabetes and dyslipidemia. VAT can be accurately assessed by computed topography or magnetic resonance imaging, but is also estimated from anthropometric variables, such as waist-to-hip ratio, waist circumference, or sagittal diameter. To date, anthropometric variables have been used largely in whites and inadequate data are available to evaluate the validity of these variables in other groups. OBJECTIVES: The objectives of this study were to 1) determine whether amount of VAT in relation to total body fatness differs in different race and sex groups and 2) determine which anthropometric variables predict amount of VAT in different race and sex groups. DESIGN: We determined the amount and location of body fat, including assessment of VAT by computed tomography, in young adult white and black men and women participating in the 10-y follow-up of the CARDIA (Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults) Study. RESULTS: Black men had less visceral fat (73.1+/-35.9 cm2) than white men (99.3+/-40 cm2), even when VAT was corrected for total body fatness. Black women were more obese than white women and thus had more visceral fat (75.1+/-37.5 compared with 58.6+/-35.9 cm2, respectively). This difference disappeared when corrected for total body fatness. CONCLUSIONS: Both waist circumference and sagittal diameter were good predictors of VAT in all groups. However, the nature of this relation differed such that race- and sex-specific equations will likely be required to estimate VAT from waist circumference or sagittal diameter.

Adipose Tissue↗