gms | German Medical Science

7th EFSMA – European Congress of Sports Medicine, 3rd Central European Congress of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Annual Assembly of the German and the Austrian Society of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation

Austrian Society of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation

26.-29.10.2011, Salzburg, Austria

The Effects of Resistance Training on Visceral Adipose Tissue and Inflammatory Response: A Meta-Analysis

Meeting Abstract

  • corresponding author presenting/speaker Barbara Strasser - UMIT - Department for Medical Sciences and Management, Hall i.T., Austria
  • author Marjan Arvandi - UMIT - Department of Public Health, Information Systems and Health Technology Assessment, Hall i.T., Austria
  • author Wolfgang Schobersberger - UMIT - Department for Medical Sciences and Management, Hall i.T., Austria
  • author Uwe Siebert - UMIT - Department of Public Health, Information Systems and Health Technology Assessment, Hall i.T., Austria

7th EFSMA – European Congress of Sports Medicine, 3rd Central European Congress of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. Salzburg, 26.-29.10.2011. Düsseldorf: German Medical Science GMS Publishing House; 2011. Doc11esm058

doi: 10.3205/11esm058, urn:nbn:de:0183-11esm0581

Published: October 24, 2011

© 2011 Strasser et al.
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/deed.en). You are free: to Share – to copy, distribute and transmit the work, provided the original author and source are credited.


Outline

Text

Objective: Whether resistance training (RT) alters visceral fat and several proinflammatory cytokines produced in adipose tissue has not been convinced established. The objective of this review was (1) to perform a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCT) regarding the effect of RT on a) visceral adipose tissue (VAT) and b) on specific biomarkers of inflammation, i.e. adiponectin, leptin, C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α). One additional aim was (2) to investigate the potential of a dose-response relationship between RT variables (duration, intensity, volume) and assessed outcomes.

Material/Methods: Studies were retrieved by searching MEDLINE and Cochrane Library (1990–December 2010). Studies were included if they were RCTs comparing RT with an exercise or non-exercise control group among sedentary healthy or overweight/obese adults. 21 RCTs met our inclusion criteria. We performed random effects meta-analysis to determine weighted mean differences (WMD) with 95% confidence intervals using the software package Review Manager 5.0 of the Cochrane Collaboration. A random-effects meta-regression model was performed to examine dose-response relationships between RT variables and assessed outcomes.

Results: RT reduced VAT by 10.77 cm² (95%CI: -20.94 to -0.59, p=0.04) or 0.19 liter (95%CI: -0.37 to -0.01, p=0.04). The pooled reduction in CRP was 0.23mg/liter (95%CI: -0.41 to -0.04, p=0.02) (Table 1 [Tab. 1]). There was no statistically significant effect of RT on serum concentration of adiponectin, leptin, IL-6 and TNF-α. Further, it appears that there is a dose-response relationship between RT intensity and adiponectin – i.e., that higher intensity RT leads to additional benefits – and RT duration and leptin. However, additional research will be necessary to confirm these findings.

Conclusion: In summary, this meta-analysis found that RT significantly decreases visceral fat and seems to be effective in reducing resting levels of serum CRP, and therefore should be recommended in the management of obesity.


References

1.
De Salles BF, Simão R, Fleck SJ, et al. Effects of resistance training on cytokines. Int J Sports Med. 2010;31:441-450.
2.
Higgins JP, Thompson SG, Deeks JJ, Altman DG. Measuring inconsistency in meta-analyses. BMJ. 2003;327:557-60.
3.
Jadad AR, Moore RA, Carroll D, Jenkinson C, Reynolds DJ, Gavaghan DJ, McQuay HJ. Assessing the quality of reports of randomized clinical trials: Is blinding necessary? Control Clin Trials. 1996;17:1-12.
4.
Thompson SG. Why and how sources of heterogeneity should be investigated. In: Egger M, Smith GD, Altman DG, eds. Systematic Reviews in Health Care: Meta-Analysis in Context. London: BMJ Publishing Group; 2001.