Visceral Adiposity Subtraction is a specialized medical imaging technique used to quantify the volume or area of visceral adipose tissue (VAT) by computationally removing the subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT) component from a cross-sectional image of the abdomen. This process yields a precise, quantitative measurement of the metabolically active fat stored around the internal organs, which is a stronger independent risk factor for cardiometabolic diseases than overall body mass index (BMI). It is primarily performed using gold-standard modalities like Computed Tomography (CT) or Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI).
Origin
The term’s origin is rooted in the fields of radiology and metabolic research, stemming from the realization that the anatomical distribution of body fat is more clinically significant than the total fat mass. Early manual tracing methods were cumbersome, leading to the development of automated software algorithms in the late 20th century that could mathematically separate the VAT compartment from the SAT compartment using tissue density differences. This technique transformed the non-invasive assessment of abdominal obesity risk.
Mechanism
The mechanism relies on the distinct physical properties of different tissue types as captured by imaging modalities like CT or MRI. The software first delineates the abdominal wall, which separates the subcutaneous fat from the intra-abdominal cavity. It then uses established Hounsfield unit ranges (for CT) or signal intensity characteristics (for MRI) to identify and segment the adipose tissue within the visceral cavity. The subtraction is a computational step where the software isolates the VAT volume by mathematically excluding the other abdominal compartments, providing a highly accurate, quantitative measure of this
We use cookies to personalize content and marketing, and to analyze our traffic. This helps us maintain the quality of our free resources. manage your preferences below.
Detailed Cookie Preferences
This helps support our free resources through personalized marketing efforts and promotions.
Analytics cookies help us understand how visitors interact with our website, improving user experience and website performance.
Personalization cookies enable us to customize the content and features of our site based on your interactions, offering a more tailored experience.