Visceral adiposity as a factor associated with elevated blood pressure in older adults from the State of Mexico: a cross-sectional study

Abstract

Abstract

Introduction: Arterial hypertension and visceral adiposity are frequent conditions in older adults and represent relevant factors for cardiometabolic risk stratification before and during rehabilitation programs. The identification of simple clinical markers associated with blood pressure may contribute to a safer and more personalized comprehensive assessment in this population.

Objective: To evaluate the association between visceral fat and systolic and diastolic blood pressure in older adults from the State of Mexico.

Methodology: An observational, analytical, cross-sectional study was conducted in 73 older adults from Acolman, State of Mexico, with complete information on visceral fat and blood pressure. Visceral fat was assessed by electrical bioimpedance, and blood pressure was calculated as the average of three standardized measurements. Spearman correlation analyses and crude and adjusted linear regression models were performed. Adjusted models included age and recalculated body mass index. An exploratory comparison of cardiometabolic variables was also conducted between participants with and without glycemic alteration.

Results: The mean age was 65.7 ± 5.1 years, and the recalculated body mass index was 29.4 ± 5.0 kg/m². Overall, 82.2% of participants had excess body weight, mean visceral fat was 8.7 ± 3.1, and mean waist circumference was 94.3 ± 12.1 cm. Visceral fat showed a positive correlation with systolic blood pressure (rho = 0.406; p < 0.001) and diastolic blood pressure (rho = 0.252; p = 0.032). In linear regression models, each one-unit increase in visceral fat was associated with a 1.92 mmHg increase in systolic blood pressure in the crude model (95% CI: 0.80 to 3.05; p = 0.001) and a 1.80 mmHg increase in the adjusted model (95% CI: 0.10 to 3.50; p = 0.038). For diastolic blood pressure, the association was positive but did not reach statistical significance in linear models. Participants with glycemic alteration showed higher visceral fat and waist circumference values.

Conclusions: Visceral fat was more consistently associated with systolic than with diastolic blood pressure in older adults from the State of Mexico. These findings suggest that visceral fat assessment may complement cardiometabolic evaluation in comprehensive rehabilitation settings, particularly among older adults with excess body weight or glycemic alteration.

Keywords

Visceral fat; Blood pressure; Older adults; Cardiometabolic risk; Comprehensive rehabilitation.