Increased muscle fat linked to higher risk of early mortality

A new study shows that adults who have a large accumulation of fat in their muscles, known as lipomyopathy, are at an increased risk of serious side effects and death.

According to the study, the accumulation of fat in the muscles can increase the risk of early death by 15.5%.

Numerous studies have identified being overweight as a risk factor for various health problems, from diabetes to stroke and cholesterol to all causes of death.

One method doctors use to estimate a patient’s body fat percentage is the body mass index (BMI).

However, a new study has shown that this sign is not the only one that may indicate the risk of early death.

Researchers have found that storing fat in an area other than the abdomen can also pose a risk.

The findings suggest that transferring large amounts of fat to muscle can be even more dangerous.

According to the study, those who accumulate fat in this area are twice as likely to die prematurely compared to their peers with a large belly or “muffin top” (a term commonly used to describe fat deposits that extend horizontally over the waistline). ).

The research team used artificial intelligence or machine learning to extract body composition measurements from abdominal CT scans of asymptomatic adults who underwent routine bowel cancer screening between 2004 and 2016.

In addition, muscle fat was found in 55% of the 507 participants who died on average over nine years of follow-up.

The condition, medically known as myosteatosis, can be asymptomatic and lead to heart attacks or strokes.

After studying almost 9,000 adults, the study found that the risk of death after ten years is 15.5%.

And people with obesity alone had a 7.6% higher risk of premature death.

Myelopathy also outpaced other factors, including fat around the abdominal organs and fatty liver disease.

But despite the growing evidence of risk, it is often overlooked in the medical community.

Lead author Dr. Maxime Nashe, from the Institute for Experimental and Clinical Research at the Catholic University of Brussels, Belgium, said: “Interestingly, the relationship was independent of age or obesity markers such as BMI. In other words, this means that muscle fat accumulation cannot be explained only by old age or the accumulation of fat in other parts of the body.

BMI is calculated based on a patient’s height and weight, which means it is not an accurate reflection of body composition, as patients with the same BMI can have vastly different comorbidities and health risk levels.

Due to the absence of symptoms, myogenic lipodystrophy is usually diagnosed in patients undergoing imaging studies for another disease.

“To date, medical imaging using computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging remains the gold standard for evaluating lipomyopathy,” said Dr. Nashet.

The results of the study were published in the journal Radiology.

Source: Express