CT scans can measure body fat without extra radiation
Assessment of whole-body and regional body fat using abdominal quantitative computed tomography in Chinese women and men
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
QCT and DXA visceral fat measurements correlate almost perfectly in men (r=0.97)
People assume different imaging methods would show significant variation, but this shows near-perfect agreement for visceral fat—a key health risk indicator.
Practical Takeaways
Ask your doctor if your existing abdominal CT scan can be repurposed for body fat analysis during routine checkups.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
QCT and DXA visceral fat measurements correlate almost perfectly in men (r=0.97)
People assume different imaging methods would show significant variation, but this shows near-perfect agreement for visceral fat—a key health risk indicator.
Practical Takeaways
Ask your doctor if your existing abdominal CT scan can be repurposed for body fat analysis during routine checkups.
Publication
Journal
Lipids in Health and Disease
Year
2024
Authors
Jinci Mai, Qiulian Wu, Huanhua Wu, Chunyuan Zeng, Yingxin Li, Jingjie Shang, Biao Wu, Qijun Cai, Junbi Du, Jian Gong
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Claims (10)
Men typically exhibit higher body fat percentage in the abdominal region compared to other body regions.
In Chinese men and women, measuring belly fat with QCT scans is closely related to total body fat measured by DXA scans, with the strength of the relationship varying by sex and where the belly scan is taken.
For Chinese men, combining belly fat measurements from a single CT slice at the L1/L2 level with BMI can accurately estimate total body fat, accounting for 83% of the variation seen in DXA scans.
For Chinese women, using belly fat measurements from a CT slice at the L5/S1 level along with body weight can predict total body fat with 81% accuracy compared to DXA scans.
When measuring belly fat volume, QCT and DXA scans give very similar results in Chinese men and women, with men showing almost perfect agreement and women showing very strong agreement.