Nutr Metab (Lond). 2026 May 8. doi: 10.1186/s12986-026-01127-y. Online ahead of print.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: This study seeks to investigate the relationship between pericardial fat volume and the risk of developing type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE).
METHODS: The analysis included a cohort of 39, 125 participants from the UK Biobank. The associations between the mean estimate pericardial fat area (MEPFA), as measured by cardiac magnetic resonance imaging, and the incidence of T2DM and MACE were evaluated using multivariable Cox proportional hazards regression models and Kaplan-Meier survival curves.
RESULTS: There were 343 occurrences of new-onset T2DM and 1, 894 occurrences of new-onset MACE over a median follow-up period of 55 months. Compared with patients with MEPFA ≤ 13.80 cm2, there was a significantly higher risk of new-onset T2DM (adjusted-HR: 2.09, 95% CI 1.38 to 3.18, P < 0.001) and MACE (adjusted-HR: 1.19, 95% CI 1.02 to 1.39, P = 0.027) in the highest MEPFA quartiles. The survival analysis further substantiated this discrepancy, with a log-rank test yielding P < 0.001. Participants exhibiting higher levels of MEPFA demonstrated poorer left ventricular morphology, systolic function, and global strain.
CONCLUSIONS: The findings indicated that elevated MEPFA levels were significantly and independently associated with the onset of T2DM and MACE. Preliminary results suggested that increased levels of pericardial fat might enhance the predictive capability for cardio-metabolic risk.
PMID:42104438 | DOI:10.1186/s12986-026-01127-y