A minipig model of body adipose tissue distribution.

A relatively increased central (truncal) distribution of body adipose tissue has been associated with increased risk for the development of coronary heart disease in human beings. Animal models available to study this phenomenon have been limited. Validity and reliability studies of B-mode ultrasound for the measurement of subcutaneous adipose tissue thickness in miniature swine were conducted. The results showed that ultrasound measurements of subcutaneous adipose tissue thickness were accurate (+/- 0.1 cm) 95 percent of the time when compared to direct in situ ruler measurements. There was no significant systematic measurement error. Ultrasound measurements were repeatable (+/- 0.2 cm) 95 percent of the time. A computerized tomographic (CT) method to quantitate intra-abdominal adipose tissue was also developed. Serial CT measurement of total cross-sectional, density-contoured adipose tissue area correlated significantly (r = 0.91, P less than 0.01) with total intra-abdominal adipose tissue weight. This model should be useful for comparative study of the association of regional body adipose tissue distribution with the development of atherosclerotic lesions and other coronary heart disease risk factors.