The association between ultrasound-estimated visceral fat deposition and uterine fibroids: an observational study

Abstract

Uterine fibroids are the most common neoplasm of the genital tract in reproductive women. Obesity holds a role as risk factor for uterine fibroids, through hormonal and inflammatory mechanisms. Visceral fat is a hormonally active tissue, so an increase in visceral fat may be considered as a risk factor, through the increased production of inflammatory mediators. The aim of the study was, therefore, to evaluate the association between the presence of uterine fibroids and fat tissue distribution, and to assess the efficacy of both anthropometric and instrumental indicators, in particular the sonographic measurement of preperitoneal fat thickness (PFT) and subcutaneous fat thickness (SFT). Study group consisted of childbearing-age women with at least one uterine fibroid with a diameter ≥10 mm (n = 71), all the childbearing-age women who access to the outpatient service of our institution in the same period, without evidence of uterine fibroids, constituted the control group (n = 145). A significantly difference in BMI (p = 0.0034), PFT (p < 0.0001), and SFT (p = 0.0003) emerged. At the multivariate analysis, only PFT showed an independent significant association with the presence of uterine fibroids (p < 0.0001). The ROC curve analysis identified a cut-off value of 6.7 mm of PFT as discriminator for the presence of uterine fibroids.