Objective: 18F-Fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) allows noninvasive assessment of glucose metabolism and radiodensity in visceral adipose tissue (VAT) and subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT). We aimed to address the effects of ageing and metabolic factors on abdominal adipose tissue.

Design, patients and measurements: We retrospectively analyzed data from 435 healthy men (mean 42.8 years) who underwent a health check-up programme twice, at baseline and the 5-year follow-up. The mean standardized uptake value (SUV) was measured using SAT and VAT and divided by the liver SUV. The mean Hounsfield units (HU) of the SAT and VAT were measured from the CT scans. The effects of clinical variable clusters on SUVR were investigated using Bayesian hierarchical modelling; metabolic cluster (BMI, waist-to-hip ratio, fat percentage, muscle percentage*-1, HOMA-IR), blood pressure (systolic, diastolic), glucose (fasting plasma glucose level, HbA1c) and C-reactive protein.

Results: All the clinical variables changed during the 5-year follow-up period. The SUVR and HU of the VAT increased during follow-up; however, those of the SAT did not change. SUVR and HU were positively correlated with both VAT and SAT. SAT and VAT SUVR were negatively associated with metabolic clusters.

Conclusions: Ageing led to increased glucose metabolism and radiodensity in VAT, but not in SAT. VAT may reflect the ageing process more directly than SAT. Glucose metabolism was higher and radiodensity was lower in VAT than in SAT, probably owing to differences in gene expression and lipid density. Both glucose metabolism and radiodensity of VAT and SAT reflect metabolic status.