AUTHOR=Zheng Chu-Shan , Wen Hui-Quan , Lin Wu-Sheng , Luo Xiao-Wen , Shen Li-Shan , Zhou Xiang , Zou Feng-Yun , Li Qing-Ling , Hu Hui-Jun , Guo Ruo-Mi 

TITLE=Quantification of lumbar vertebral fat deposition: Correlation with menopausal status, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and subcutaneous adipose tissue

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Endocrinology

VOLUME=13

YEAR=2023

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/endocrinology/articles/10.3389/fendo.2022.1099919

DOI=10.3389/fendo.2022.1099919

ISSN=1664-2392

ABSTRACT=<sec><title>Purpose</title><p>To assess abdominal fat deposition and lumbar vertebra with iterative decomposition of water and fat with echo asymmetry and least-squares estimation (IDEAL-IQ) and investigate their correlation with menopausal status.</p></sec><sec><title>Materials and Methods</title><p>Two hundred forty women who underwent routine abdominal MRI and IDEAL-IQ between January 2016 and April 2021 were divided into two cohorts (first cohort: 120 pre- or postmenopausal women with severe fatty livers or without fatty livers; second cohort: 120 pre- or postmenopausal women who were obese or normal weight). The fat fraction (FF) values of the liver (FF<sub>liver</sub>) and lumbar vertebra (FF<sub>lumbar</sub>) in the first group and the FF values of subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT) (FF<sub>SAT</sub>) and FF<sub>lumbar</sub> in the second group were measured and compared using IDEAL-IQ.</p></sec><sec><title>Results</title><p>Two hundred forty women were evaluated. FF<sub>lumbar</sub> was significantly higher in both pre- and postmenopausal women with severe fatty liver than in patients without fatty livers (premenopausal women: <italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.001, postmenopausal women: <italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.001). No significant difference in the FF<sub>lumbar</sub> was observed between obese patients and normal-weight patients among pre- and postmenopausal women (premenopausal women: <italic>p</italic> = 0.113, postmenopausal women: <italic>p</italic> = 0.092). Significantly greater lumbar fat deposition was observed in postmenopausal women than in premenopausal women with or without fatty liver and obesity (<italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.001 for each group). A high correlation was detected between FF<sub>liver</sub> and FF<sub>lumbar</sub> in women with severe fatty liver (premenopausal women: r=0.76, p&lt;0.01; postmenopausal women: r=0.82, p&lt;0.01).</p></sec><sec><title>Conclusion</title><p>Fat deposition in the vertebral marrow was significantly associated with liver fat deposition in postmenopausal women.</p></sec>