Association between Visceral or Subcutaneous Fat Accumulation and B-Type Natriuretic Peptide among Japanese Subjects: A Cross-Sectional Study

Background: Some previous studies have shown reduced levels of plasma B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) in individuals with obesity. We aimed to estimate the relationship between BNP and abdominal fat distribution, adjusted for confounding factors.

Methods: This cross-sectional study included 1806 Japanese individuals (981 men and 825 women) who underwent a medical health check-up. Analyzed data included age, sex, visceral fat area (VFA), and subcutaneous fat area (SFA) as obtained from computed tomography, blood pressure, and blood test results including BNP. Multiple linear regression analysis was used to examine the association between BNP, VFA, and SFA after adjusting for age, sex, comorbidities, and body mass index.

Results: In the models analyzed separately for VFA and SFA, BNP correlated independently with VFA in multiple linear regression analysis among all subjects and in both men and women, while SFA correlated inversely with BNP in all subjects and women but not in men. In the model that included both VFA and SFA, BNP correlated independently with VFA, but SFA and BNP were not correlated in any models.

Conclusion: Higher VFA showed an independent, significant association with lower BNP. In addition, the inverse correlation with BNP was stronger for VFA than for SFA.