Liposuction does not achieve metabolic benefits of weight loss

Abdominal liposuction does not significantly improve metabolic abnormalities associated with obesity, and removing adipose tissue mass alone does not achieve the metabolic benefits of weight loss, a new research report says (New England Journal of Medicine 2004;350:2549-57).

Abdominal obesity is associated with insulin resistance and other metabolic risk factors for coronary heart disease. Although both the abdominal subcutaneous fat mass and the visceral fat mass are associated with insulin resistance, it is not known whether one or both of these fat depots are actually involved in the pathogenesis of insulin resistance or whether they are simply associated with the metabolic complications of obesity. …