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Impact of body mass index on CT attenuation of adrenal adenoma
Akihiro Nishie1, Yoshiki Asayama1, Kousei Ishigami1
1Department of Clinical Radiology, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kyushu University, 3-1-1, Maidashi, Higashi-ku, Fukuoka, 812-8582, Japan.
Insights
Lipid metabolism factors like BMI and cortisol influence adrenal adenoma CT scans. Pathological clear cell ratio also affects imaging, impacting diagnosis.
Area of Science:
- Radiology
- Endocrinology
- Pathology
Background:
- Adrenal adenomas (AAs) are common tumors.
- Unenhanced CT attenuation is a key imaging feature.
- Factors influencing AA CT attenuation require further investigation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine if lipid metabolism-related factors influence unenhanced CT attenuation in adrenal adenomas.
- To explore correlations between CT attenuation and clinicopathological factors.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective analysis of 36 surgically confirmed adrenal adenomas.
- Measurement of unenhanced CT attenuation for AAs and liver.
- Assessment of clear cell ratio (CCR) and collection of clinical data including BMI, cortisol, and lipids.
Main Results:
- CT attenuation correlated significantly with CCR, BMI, and blood cortisol levels in all patients.
- Similar correlations were observed for patients with primary aldosteronism or non-functioning AA.
Conclusions:
- Lipid metabolism factors, specifically BMI and blood cortisol, impact unenhanced CT attenuation of adrenal adenomas.
- Pathological factors like CCR also play a role in AA CT attenuation.
Objective:
To investigate whether lipid metabolism-related factors regulate unenhanced CT attenuation in adrenal adenoma (AA).
Materials And Methods:
Thirty-six patients with surgically proven AAs were enrolled in this study. The patients' underlying diseases were the following: primary aldosteronism (n = 24), Cushing's syndrome (n = 8), subclinical Cushing's syndrome (n = 3) and non-functioning AA (n = 1). Unenhanced CT attenuation of AAs and liver was measured. Pathologically, clear cell ratio (CCR) constituting each AA was qualitatively assessed. Clinical data including tumor diameter, body mass index (BMI), hemoglobin A1c, triglyceride, total cholesterol, blood cortisol and plasma aldosterone levels were also obtained. Simple and multiple linear regression analyses were performed to evaluate the radiological and clinicopathological factors associated with CT attenuation of AAs for all patients and separately for 25 patients with primary aldosteronism or non-functioning AA.
Results:
For all patients, there was a significant correlation between CT attenuation and each of CCR, BMI and blood cortisol levels (p < 0.05). For patients with primary aldosteronism or non-functioning AA, there was also a significant correlation between CT attenuation and CCR or BMI (p < 0.05).
Conclusion:
In addition to pathological factors, lipid-metabolism-related factors including BMI and blood cortisol levels can affect unenhanced CT attenuation of AA.
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