Objective: Although obesity is associated with an increased risk of chronic kidney disease, this trend becomes nonsignificant following adjustment for cardiovascular risk factors. The present study aims to investigate whether visceral obesity is independently associated with renal function impairment. Method: The medical records of 14,529 male and 10,561 female Chinese adults undergoing health check-ups during 2013–2015 were retrospectively collected. The baseline characteristics, including the degree of visceral fat and the percentage of body fat, were compared. The association between study groups and renal function impairment was investigated using regression models adjusted for confounding factors. Results: All variables differed significantly among non-obese, peripheral, and central type obese subjects, both younger and older, and of both genders, except for hsCRP in older male subjects (p = 0.053) and eGFR in older female subjects (p = 0.098). Unadjusted univariate analysis showed that central obesity contributed significantly to renal function impairment in all age groups and in both genders. After adjusting for possible confounding factors, only central obesity was found to be an independent factor of renal function impairment in all groups, except for men under 45 years of age. Conclusion: Visceral obesity is independently associated with renal function impairment in all ages and both genders, except for males younger than 45 years.

Lung function deterioration is frequently observed in overweight and obese patients. In the current study, we explored the contribution of body fat (BF) composition, particularly visceral and nonvisceral adiposity, to lung function deterioration. In addition, we examined gender- and age-specific differences in the association between the joint effects of BF% and C-reactive protein (CRP) concentrations with lung function. This cross-sectional study involved 17,802 subjects undergoing health check-up. Clinical characteristics, body composition using bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA), and lung function were evaluated and compared between genders. Subjects were stratified by gender-specific BF% cut-offs for evaluating the association of body composition and the risk of restrictive lung disease (RLD). Gender differences in the joint effects of BF% and CRP on lung function were observed. Visceral obesity increased the risk of RLD in women aged ≥45 years, but nonvisceral obesity reduced the risk of RLD in women aged <45 years. Our findings suggest that visceral fat per se can be used as an effective parameter to assess the association between lung function and obesity.