Association between skeletal muscle mass to visceral fat area ratio and insulin resistance in type 2 diabetes

Methods A cross-sectional design was used in this study. We investigated the Skeletal muscle mass to visceral fat area ratio (SVR), neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio (NLR), and insulin resistance (IR) in 201 patients with T2DMwho treated in the outpatient department and ward of the Department of Endocrinology of the Seventh People's Hospital of Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine between June 2022 and March 2023. Appendicular skeletal muscle mass (ASM), total body fat (TBF), visceral fat area (VFA), and basal metabolic volume were measured using multifrequency bioimpedance analysis method. The percentage of body fat to body mass (TBF%), appendicular skeletal muscle mass index (ASMI), and SVR were calculated. Results Patients were divided equally into three groups (Q1–Q3) according to SVR levels. Compared with the Q3 group, in both Q1 and Q2 groups, waist-hip ratio, neutrophils, NLR, fasting blood glucose, fasting insulin, homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), triglycerides, total cholesterol, free fatty acid, TBF, TBF%, and VFA were all increased (P<0.005), whereas lymphocytes, insulin sensitivity index (ISI), ASM, ASMI, basal metabolic rate, and SVR were all decreased (P<0.005). Conclusion There is a correlation between SVR and IR in T2DM patients, suggesting that SVR has certain clinical value in the early warning of IR in T2DM.