Exercise and Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: Changes in Tissue-specific Fat Distribution and Cardiac Function

Author Affiliations

Published Online:Nov 1 2013https://doi.org/10.1148/radiol.13121631

Abstract

Hepatic triglyceride (TG) content and visceral abdominal and paracardial fat decreased in response to 6 months of exercise training in 12 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus, but epicardial fat and myocardial TG content did not decrease.

Purpose

To prospectively assess the effects of an exercise intervention on organ-specific fat accumulation and cardiac function in type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Materials and Methods

Written informed consent was obtained from all participants, and the study protocol was approved by the medical ethics committee. The study followed 12 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (seven men; mean age, 46 years ± 2 [standard error]) before and after 6 months of moderate-intensity exercise, followed by a high-altitude trekking expedition with exercise of long duration. Abdominal, epicardial, and paracardial fat volume were measured by using magnetic resonance (MR) imaging. Cardiac function was quantified with cardiac MR, and images were analyzed by a researcher who was supervised by a senior researcher (4 and 21 years of respective experience in cardiac MR). Hepatic, myocardial, and intramyocellular triglyceride (TG) content relative to water were measured with proton MR spectroscopy at 1.5 and 7 T. Two-tailed paired t tests were used for statistical analysis.

Results

Exercise reduced visceral abdominal fat volume from 348 mL ± 57 to 219 mL ± 33 (P < .01), and subcutaneous abdominal fat volume remained unchanged (P = .9). Exercise decreased hepatic TG content from 6.8% ± 2.3 to 4.6% ± 1.6 (P < .01) and paracardial fat volume from 4.6 mL ± 0.9 to 3.7 mL ± 0.8 (P = .02). Exercise did not change epicardial fat volume (P = .9), myocardial TG content (P = .9), intramyocellular lipid content (P = .3), or cardiac function (P = .5).

Conclusion

A 6-month exercise intervention in type 2 diabetes mellitus decreased hepatic TG content and visceral abdominal and paracardial fat volume, which are associated with increased cardiovascular risk, but cardiac function was unaffected. Tissue-specific exercise-induced changes in body fat distribution in type 2 diabetes mellitus were demonstrated in this study.

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Article History

Received August 13, 2012; revision requested October 8; revision received February 20, 2013; accepted February 28; final version accepted February 28.
Published online: Nov 2013
Published in print: Nov 2013

Vol. 269, No. 2

Supplemental Material

Abbreviations

Abbreviations:
ECG	electrocardiography
HDL	high-density lipoprotein
IMCL	intramyocellular lipid
LV	left ventricle
TG	triglyceride

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