A Baragetti, G Pisano, C Bertelli, K Garlaschelli, L Grigore, A L Fracanzani, S Fargion, G D Norata, A L Catapano
BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Abdominal obesity and hepatic steatosis are ectopic fat depots associated with Metabolic Syndrome (MetS). Epicardial Fat Thickness (EFT) is a newly discovered one, increasing with obesity, insulin resistance and MetS. Therefore we studied whether different ectopic fat markers, and EFT in particular, are associated with MetS and markers of subclinical cardiovascular disease. METHODS AND RESULTS: 868 subjects from the PLIC Study were included, EFT, aortic calcifications, carotid Intima-Media Thickness (c-IMT) and echocardiographic parameters were determined by ultrasound; extra-cardiac atherosclerotic lesions were defined in presence of plaques at both carotid and aortic levels...
February 2016: Nutrition, Metabolism, and Cardiovascular Diseases: NMCD