Role of Epicardial Adipose Tissue in Cardiovascular Diseases

In obesity the risk of cardiovascular diseases is more strongly related to the visceral rather than subcutaneous adiposity. Epicardial adipose tissue is a kind of visceral fat which located between myocardium and visceral pericardium. Rapid improvements in noninvasive techniques for cardiac imaging made a strong interest in the imaging of epicardial and perivascular adipose tissue as proxy measures of visceral adiposity which is more specific and sensitive indicators of cardiometabolic risk. To date epicardial adipose tissue is considered to modulate various physiological and pathological cardiac functions through the paracrine activity. Epicardial adipose tissue act as an endocrine organ by releasing bioactive proteins which known as adipokines, that can direct and locally act on nearby vessels and tissues. Extensive experimental and clinical evidence has confirmed the key role of inflammatory adipokines in the development of atherosclerosis and other cardiovascular diseases. Nevertheless, the mechanisms of inflammatory processes are not fully understood. In this review we tried to notice some important roles of epicardial adipose tissue in cardiovascular diseases.