Abstract P363: Visceral, but Not Subcutaneous Adiposity by Computed Tomography is Associated With Increased Aortic Wall Thickness in Psoriasis Patients

• Published in: Circulation (New York, N.Y.) Vol. 137; no. suppl_1
• Main Authors: Groenendyk, Jacob W, Shukla, Parag, Elnabawi, Youssef A, Rivers, Joshua P, Goyal, Aditya, Belur, Agastya D, Dey, Amit K, Sadek, Ahmed, Nanda, Navya, Rodante, Justin, Ahlman, Mark A, Joshi, Aditya A, Gelfand, Joel M, Playford, Martin P, Mehta, Nehal N
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 20-03-2018
• ISSN: 0009-7322; 1524-4539
• DOI: 10.1161/circ.137.suppl_1.p363

Abstract only
Introduction:
Patients with psoriasis (PSO), an inflammatory skin disease, experience increased cardiovascular disease and obesity. Traditional measures of obesity, such as BMI and waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), do not fully capture the increased cardiovascular risk. Assessment of adipose tissue distribution via CT scan enables characterization of visceral adiposity (VAT) versus subcutaneous adiposity (SAT), which is clinically useful as excess VAT is known to be associated with cardiovascular events. Aortic Wall Thickness (AWT) is a validated measure of subclinical atherosclerosis. However, the relationship between adiposity distribution and AWT is unknown.
Hypothesis:
We hypothesized that VAT, but not SAT, BMI, or WHR, would be associated with increased AWT in PSO patients.
Methods:
Consecutive PSO patients (n=164) underwent quantification of VAT and SAT via CT, and AWT via MRI of the descending aorta. Interrelationships were analyzed via multivariable regression.
Results:
Patients were middle-aged (mean 50.4), predominantly male (56%), and were at low cardiovascular risk (median Framingham risk 3), despite high prevalence of hyperlipidemia (47%). VAT was significantly associated with AWT (β=0.18, p=0.04), SAT, BMI, or WHR did not demonstrate similar association. This association persisted beyond adjustment for SAT, Framingham score, insulin resistance, and systolic BP (β=0.30, p=0.03).
Conclusions:
Visceral adiposity demonstrated an association with AWT, a marker of early atherosclerosis, whereas subcutaneous adiposity, BMI, and WHR did not. These findings add to a growing body of literature that visceral fat and its assessment may provide incremental data for risk of subclinical CVD.