The study group of ectopic fat storage studies how fat storage in various organs, such as the liver, muscle, and heart, increases the risk of disease development. The hypothesis is that mapping fat deposits and muscle quality in the body will help identify individuals at the highest risk of developing organ-specific diseases, such as cardiovascular disease, chronic liver disease, kidney disease, or premature death.
We use clinical, experimental, and radiological methods on severely ill, chronically ill, and healthy subjects to map mechanisms and biomarkers.
Over the past four decades, the global prevalence of type 2 diabetes and obesity has increased significantly. Today, nearly two billion people are considered overweight, of which two out of five suffer from obesity. Overweight, and particularly abdominal obesity, is strongly associated with metabolic syndrome, which, in addition to type 2 diabetes, also includes high blood pressure and elevated blood lipids. However, overweight is also associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, liver disease, and kidney disease.
The most common method for estimating overweight is by calculating Body Mass Index (BMI), which is a rough estimate of an individual’s weight and therefore prone to errors. Recently, it has been noted that where and how fat is stored is more important than an individual’s BMI. Using MRI scans, the amount of fat in the liver, abdomen, heart, and muscles can be estimated with high precision.
This group aims to use groundbreaking methods to identify, phenotype, and predict healthy as well as severely ill individuals existing and future risk of disease.
The study group of ectopic fat storage has gathered world-leading expertise across hepatology, cardiology, clinical physiology, general medicine, radiology, MRI physics, omics, genetics, experimental biomedicine, modelling, and health economics.
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