Reproducibility of ultrasonography as an assessment tool for abdominal adipose tissue

Abstract The growing demand for practical, accessible, and clinically meaningful diagnostic strategies to assess visceral adiposity has spurred the exploration of alternative methods for evaluating body composition. This study aimed to examine the intra- and inter-rater reproducibility of ultrasonography (US) in precisely estimating abdominal adipose tissue within both its visceral adipose tissue (VAT) and subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT) compartments. Conducted between 2020 and 2021, this methodological study encompassed a diverse group of adult individuals, aged 20 to 59, representing both sexes. The assessment of VAT and SAT involved a US scan across three distinct anatomical sites within the abdominal region. The analysis of ultrasound measurements exhibited robust intra- and inter-rater concordance, quantified by the Intra-Class Correlation Coefficient (ICC) exceeding the threshold for excellent agreement (≥ 0.971). This strong agreement was reaffirmed by the Bland-Altman plots, while the linear regression line underscored the consistent symmetry among the measurements. The present study confirms the high reproducibility of ultrasound in estimating visceral adiposity, an important predictor of cardiovascular and metabolic risk.