ObjectivePatients with GH deficiency (GHD) are insulin resistant with an increase in visceral fat mass (FM). Whether this holds true when sedentary control subjects (CS) are matched for waist has not been documented.GH replacement therapy (GHRT) results in a decrease in FM. Whether the decrease in FM is mainly related to a reduction in visceral FM remains to be proven. The aim was to separately assess visceral and subcutaneous FM in relation to insulin resistance (IR) in GHD patients before and after GHRT and in sedentary CS.MethodsTen patients with GHD were investigated before and 6 months after GHRT. Sedentary CS matched for age, gender, body mass index, and waist were assessed. Exercise capacity was measured as VO2maxusing an incremental work load on a treadmill. Visceral and subcutaneous FM were measured using whole-body magnetic resonance imaging and IR by the homeostasis model assessment of IR (HOMA-IR) index.ResultsGHD patients had a non-significantly lower VO2maxbut did not have increased subcutaneous and visceral FM compared with CS. GHRT resulted in a similar relative decrease in subcutaneous and visceral FM. Compared with CS, GHD patients showed a lower HOMA-IR. GHRT tended to increase HOMA-IR.ConclusionMatching for waist and separate assessment of visceral and subcutaneous FM may be critical in the evaluation of body composition and IR in GHD patients before and after GHRT.

Introduction The “metabolic syndrome” represents a cardiovascular risk factor with epidemic dimensions all over the world. Depending on the exact definition and the group of individuals included, up to 40% of the public suffer from that condition, which includes insulin resistance as the major symptom. Because intramyocellular (IMCL) and intrahepatocellular lipids (IHCL) are both related to insulin sensitivity [1], H-MR spectroscopy studies of these lipids are of crucial importance to understand the pathophysiology and to follow therapeutic interventions. IMCL are metabolically active and the concentration in skeletal muscle can be changed within several hours with diet and exercise. In contrast, the short-term effects of exercise and diet on IHCL are much less explored. This study investigates the influence of exercise on IHCL and IMCL levels in order to achieve an improved standardization of IHCL measurements and to understand the factors that increase IHCL levels.

We assessed systemic and local muscle fuel metabolism during aerobic exercise in patients with type 1 diabetes at euglycaemia and hyperglycaemia with identical insulin levels.