Abdominal Ultrasonography for VAT and SAT Measurement

Abdominal ultrasonography was carried out on the fasting patients by the same physician, using a Logiq 3 Pro instrument equipped with a 7.5 MHz linear probe and with a 3.5 MHz convex-array probe (GE Healthcare). VAT and SAT were measured 1 cm above the umbilicus. The measurements were taken at the end of expiration and applying a standardized probe pressure. SAT, measured with the 7.5 MHz linear probe, was defined as the distance between the epidermis and the external face of the rectus abdominis muscle; VAT, measured with the 3.5 MHz convex-array probe, was defined as the distance between the anterior wall of the aorta and the posterior surface of the rectus abdominis muscle [19 (link),20 (link)]. Each measurement was taken three times and the mean of the three measurements was entered into the database.