Fat Mass Index, Not BMI, Could Predict CVD in Diabetes

Fat mass is more predictive of risk of cardiovascular events than is body mass index (BMI) in people with diabetes, according to the results of a recent study.

Currently, there is little information on the predictive value of lean body mass and fat mass in patients with type 2 diabetes, according to the study’s authors.

For this reason, they conducted a post hoc analysis of data from 10,251 participants in the Action to Control Cardiovascular Risk in Diabetes (ACCORD) study.

After a mean follow-up of 8.8 years, major cardiovascular events (defined as the composite of nonfatal myocardial infarction, nonfatal stroke, or death from cardiovascular causes) occurred in 1801 of 10,251 patients (17.8%). While predicted lean BMI was not associated with major cardiovascular events, the hazard ratio for those in the fourth quartile of predicted fat mass index was 1.53.

“In patients with a mean 10-year history of type 2 diabetes mellitus, higher predicted fat mass is associated with a higher risk of major adverse cardiovascular events,” they concluded.

—Michael Potts

Xing Z, Tang L, Chen J, et al. Association of predicted lean body mass and fat mass with cardiovascular events in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus [published online September 23, 2019]. CMAJ. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1503/cmaj.190124.