Liu Yanwei, Yang Shiqiang, Wei Jun
Department of Neurology, The First People's Hospital of Yibin, Yibin, China.
Department of Neurosurgery, West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
Front Nutr. 2025 Jun 11;12:1544084. doi: 10.3389/fnut.2025.1544084. eCollection 2025.
Obesity and arterial stiffness are known risk factors for cardiovascular disease, but the relationship between visceral adiposity index (VAI) and estimated pulse wave velocity (ePWV) is still unclear.
This study used cross-sectional study data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) database from 2007 to 2016. After data cleaning, we performed a comprehensive weighted statistical analysis of the final dataset. This included data on demographics, medical history, test results, and chronic comorbidities. We used restricted cubic spline analysis to explore potential non-linear relationships between VAI and ePWV. We also performed weighted linear univariate and multivariate regression analyses to further explore the relationship between VAI and ePWV. Finally, we performed multiple subgroup analyses and interaction tests, as well as sensitivity analyses, to test the stability of this relationship.
Finally, 10,458 adult participants aged 20 years or older were included in this study, with a mean (SD) age of 49.2 ± 17.4 years after weighted analysis. Restricted cubic spline analysis showed a potentially "inverted-L" non-linear relationship between VAI and ePWV ( for non-linearity: <0.001). The inflection point analysis suggests its inflection point is (1.48: 1.38-1.57). Linear multivariate regression analysis suggested a significant positive correlation between VAI (0.2SD) and ePWV values ( = 0.1, 95% CI 0.04-0.17, < 0.001). The positive correlation between VAI (0.2SD) and ePWV levels remained stable in model analyses adjusted for all covariates. This association was also consistent across quartiles of VAI (-value <0.001 for trend test). These findings remained stable and consistent in subsequent subgroup and sensitivity analyses.
In this study, we found that elevated VAI values were significantly and positively associated with ePWV, especially below the inflection point of VAI less than 1.48. This association remained robust after adjustment for multiple confounders and was consistent across multiple subgroup analyses. This suggests that abdominal obesity may play an important role in atherosclerosis and highlights the importance of addressing abdominal obesity to reduce cardiovascular risk.
肥胖和动脉僵硬度是已知的心血管疾病风险因素，但内脏脂肪指数（VAI）与估计脉搏波速度（ePWV）之间的关系仍不明确。
本研究使用了2007年至2016年美国国家健康与营养检查调查（NHANES）数据库的横断面研究数据。在数据清理后，我们对最终数据集进行了全面的加权统计分析。这包括人口统计学、病史、检测结果和慢性合并症的数据。我们使用受限立方样条分析来探索VAI与ePWV之间潜在的非线性关系。我们还进行了加权线性单变量和多变量回归分析，以进一步探索VAI与ePWV之间的关系。最后，我们进行了多个亚组分析和交互检验，以及敏感性分析，以检验这种关系的稳定性。
最终，本研究纳入了10458名20岁及以上的成年参与者，加权分析后的平均（标准差）年龄为49.2± 17.4岁。受限立方样条分析显示VAI与ePWV之间存在潜在的“倒L”型非线性关系（非线性检验：<0.001）。拐点分析表明其拐点为（1.48：1.38 - 1.57）。线性多变量回归分析表明VAI（0.2标准差）与ePWV值之间存在显著正相关（β = 0.1，95%置信区间0.04 - 0.17，P < 0.001）。在对所有协变量进行调整的模型分析中，VAI（0.2标准差）与ePWV水平之间的正相关关系保持稳定。这种关联在VAI的四分位数中也一致（趋势检验P值<0.001）。这些发现在随后的亚组和敏感性分析中保持稳定和一致。
在本研究中，我们发现VAI值升高与ePWV显著正相关，尤其是在VAI小于1.48的拐点以下。在对多个混杂因素进行调整后，这种关联仍然很强，并且在多个亚组分析中一致。这表明腹部肥胖可能在动脉粥样硬化中起重要作用，并突出了解决腹部肥胖以降低心血管风险的重要性。
