Abstract:Objective To determine the effect of abdominal obesity on skeletal muscle mass and function in the middle-aged and elderly males with normal body mass index (BMI). Methods A total of 96 inpatients (≥45 years old) admitted in our department from March 2019 to July 2020 were enrolled as subjects. According to having abdominal obesity or not, they were divided into abdominal obesity group[AO(+) group, n=46] and non-abdominal obesity group [AO(-) group, n=50]. Biochemical indexes, inflammatory indexes, visceral fat area (VFA), mass and strength of skeletal muscle, and physical function were measured and compared between the two groups. SPSS statistics 19.0 was used for data analysis. According to data types, student′s t test or Chi-square test was employed for comparison between groups. The independent correlation between abdominal obesity and appendicular skeletal muscle index (ASMI) was analyzed by multiple linear regression analysis. Results The prevalence of sarcopenia, BMI, VFA, and serum levels of tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α), interleukin-6 (IL-6), C-reactive protein (CRP), fasting insulin (FINS), homeostatic model assessment for insulin resistance index (HOMA-IR), total cholesterol (TC) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) were significantly higher, and lower limb muscle mass, ASMI and 6-meter walking speed (6MWS) were obviously lower in AO(+) group than in AO(-) group (all P<0.05). Correlation analysis showed that VFA was positively correlated with BMI, TC, LDL-C, IL-6, CRP, FINS and HOMA-IR (r= 0.526-0.886, all P<0.05), and negatively with lower extremity muscle mass, ASMI and 6MWS (r=-0.640, -0.727, -0.622, all P<0.05). Multiple linear regression analysis indicated that abdominal obesity (β=0.124, P<0.001) and HOMA-IR (β=0.013, P=0.092) were independent factors for ASMI. Conclusion VFA is positively correlated with ASMI in middle-aged and elderly males, and abdominal obesity is an independent factor affecting ASMI in those with normal BMI.