Mesenteric fat thickness is associated with increased risk of obstructive sleep apnoea

Background and objective Mesenteric fat is a type of intraperitoneal adipose tissue draining into portal circulation. The objective of this study was to investigate the relationships between mesenteric fat thickness and obstructive sleep apnoea ( OSA ) in patients with suspected OSA . Methods One hundred forty‐nine subjects (men: 114; women: 35) with suspected OSA underwent ultrasound examinations of mesenteric, preperitoneal and subcutaneous fat thickness after overnight polysomnography. Body mass index ( BMI ) and neck circumference were recorded. Results The subjects with OSA ( n  = 130, apnoea/hypopnoea index ( AHI ) >5/h) had greater neck circumference, higher BMI , and greater mesenteric and preperitoneal fat thickness than those without OSA ( n  = 19, AHI  ≤ 5/h). There was positive correlation of AHI with mesenteric (r = 0.43, P  < 0.001) and preperitoneal fat thickness (r = 0.3, P  < 0.001), whereas no significant association was observed between AHI and subcutaneous fat thickness (r = 0.09, P  = 0.27). On multivariate logistic regression, after adjustments for gender, age, BMI , neck circumference, and preperitoneal and subcutaneous fat thickness, the mesenteric fat thickness had a positive association with the presence of moderate OSA and severe OSA , with odds ratios of 7.18 and 7.45 for every 1 cm increase in mesenteric fat thickness when AHI was defined as ≥15/h and AHI  ≥ 30/h, respectively. Conclusions Mesenteric fat thickness is associated with increased risk of OSA , independent of other abdominal fat thickness, BMI and neck circumference. Sonographic measurement is potentially a useful tool for further evaluating the complex association of visceral fat, metabolic syndrome and OSA .