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Abstract: The reliable estimation of the coefficient of variation (COV) and probability density function (PDF) is required to characterize the uncertainty and variability of soil properties. An outlier test, a randomness test (runs test), and a Goodness-of-Fit test are performed in sequence to determine the reliable COVs and PDFs of soil properties for Songdo silty clay. Soil properties such as Cc, e0, Cc/(1+e0), Cα/Cc, γt, and γb are found to fit to both normal and lognormal distributions, whereas cv, kv, and su/po′ appear to fit to a lognormal distribution at the 5% significant level. It is observed that the COVs of Cc, Cc/(1+e0), cv, kv, Cα/Cc, and su/po′ are larger than those of e0, γt, and γb. The COVs of cv and kv, which are associated with the time rate of consolidation, are found to be the largest among those of soil properties considered. It is also found that the Nσ rule provides similar COVs to those of a statistical method when using Nσ =6 for soil properties with small COVs and Nσ =4.2–5.3 for soil properties with large COVs. The empirical method appears to provide conservative characteristic values for soil properties that have relatively large COVs. Finally, this study presented the lower and upper bound characteristic values for properties of Songdo silty clay. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

OBJECTIVE-- Finding the anthropometric measure of visceral obesity is essential to clinical practice, because it predicts cardiovascular and metabolic risks. Sagittal abdominal diameter (SAD) has been proposed as an estimate of visceral adipose tissue (VAT). The aim of the present study was to evaluate the usefulness of SAD in predicting visceral obesity by comparing SAD to other anthropometric measures. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS-- Estimation of subcutaneous and visceral adipose tissue and measurement of SAD and transverse abdominal diameter using computed tomography at the umbilical level were obtained in 5,257 men and women who were enrolled in a health checkup program in Korea. To compare SAD to other anthropometric measures, linear regression analyses were used to determine correlations between anthropometrics and visceral obesity. RESULTS-- SAD showed a stronger correlation to VAT than waist circumference, BMI, and transverse abdominal diameter in the both sexes (men: r = 0.804, women: r = 0.724). Waist circumference showed generally stronger associations to subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT) than to VAT (men: r = 0.789 vs. 0.705, women: r = 0.820 vs. 0.636). Even after subdividing according to age or BMI in both sexes and analyzing multiple regressions, SAD showed the strongest correlation to VAT. CONCLUSIONS-- SAD showed the strongest correlation to VAT irrespective of age, sex, and the degree of obesity compared with other anthropometric measures, whereas waist circumference may have a stronger correlation to SAT than to VAT. The clinical use of SAD has advantages over other anthropometric measures in predicting VAT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Objective: It is unclear whether visceral adipose tissue (VAT) is responsible for an increased risk of coronary artery calcification (CAC). We evaluated the associations between body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC) and abdominal VAT area with the CAC in healthy Korean men. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study of 1336 Korean men free of cardiovascular disease who underwent CAC score (CACS) by multislice computed tomography (CT) and abdominal CT as part of a routine medical examination. VAT area was measured at the level of the umbilicus using CT. Results: Mean BMI, WC, total adipose tissue and VAT area were higher in subjects with moderate-to-severe CAC (CACS>100) compared to subjects with CACS≤100. The subjects in the fourth quartile of VAT had significantly higher CACS and the greater prevalence of CAC presence and moderate-to-severe CAC than those in the first to third quartiles. The highest quartiles of BMI, WC and VAT area were significantly associated with moderate-to-severe CAC in the age- and CVD risk factor-adjusted model (OR [95% CI]=1.56 [1.11–2.19], 1.56 [1.12–2.18] and 1.42 [1.01–1.98] with p <0.05 for all, respectively). Conclusion: The higher levels of general and central measure of obesity and the amount of abdominal visceral fat were related to moderate-to-severe CAC in asymptomatic Korean men with relatively low risk. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]