Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
How fat is distributed in a dog's belly compared to total body fat
By Turner, R B S et al.·Published in BMC veterinary research·2020·U-Vet Animal Hospital, Australia·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Compartmental fat distribution in the abdomen of dogs relative to overall body fat composition.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A study looked at how fat is distributed in the bellies of dogs and found that older dogs tend to have more fat in their abdominal cavity compared to younger ones. The researchers measured fat using CT scans and ultrasound in a group of 22 dogs with different body conditions. They discovered that while overall body fat didn't significantly change the ratio of visceral (internal) to subcutaneous (under the skin) fat, age played a big role. The results suggest that ultrasound could be a helpful tool for vets to estimate fat distribution in dogs, especially as they get older.
People also search for: dog belly fat distribution · why is my dog gaining weight · ultrasound for dog fat measurement
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Adipose tissue may have different metabolic and endocrine functions depending on the region of the body in which it is located. While visceral or intra-abdominal fat has been found to contribute to leptin concentrations, insulin resistance and obesity-related diseases, there are only a few imaging studies documenting the preferential distribution of body fat to either the intra-abdominal or subcutaneous compartments in dogs. This study aimed to determine if CT-measured abdominal fat distributed preferentially to the visceral space (V) relative to the subcutaneous space (SQ), with increasing DXA-determined total body fat percentage; and if ultrasound measurements of the ventral midline subcutaneous (SAT) and visceral adipose thickness (VAT) can be used to estimate the distribution of fat to the subcutaneous and visceral abdominal spaces, in a sample of 22 dogs with variable body condition. RESULTS: Multivariate analysis showed no statistically significant correlation between visceral to subcutaneous fat ratio (V/SQ) and increasing total body fat percentage (β = - 0.07, p = 0.733), but strong correlation with age (β = 0.71 p = 0.002). A substantial amount of variation for the ultrasound visceral adipose thickness to subcutaneous fat thickness (VAT/SAT) could be explained by both CT V/SQ and sex (R = 0.477, p = 0.001), with female dogs having significant lower VAT/SAT ratios compared to the male dogs (p = 0.047). The ultrasound fat measurements appeared moderately reliable, but a larger sample number is required to confirm this. CONCLUSIONS: The findings suggest that dogs with a relatively healthy to slightly overweight body condition score, distribute fat relatively similarly between their peritoneal (visceral) and subcutaneous abdominal compartments with increasing total body fat percentage. However, there was increased fat distribution to the peritoneal space relative to the subcutaneous space with increasing age. Further, abdominal ultrasound may be useful in estimating the ratio of fat distribution to both the abdominal visceral and subcutaneous spaces.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32228685/