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World J Diabetes. Nov 15, 2026; 17(11): 124565
Published online Nov 15, 2026. doi: 10.4239/wjd.124565
Published online Nov 15, 2026. doi: 10.4239/wjd.124565
Cluster analysis of computed tomography identifies duration-associated abdominal fat deposition in type 2 diabetes mellitus
Fang-Zhen Yang, Gang Li, Department of Radiology, First Central Hospital of Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin 300192, China
Hui-Yu Li, Department of Radiology, Tianjin Children’s Hospital, Tianjin 300192, China
Yu-Ling Zhang, Qian Ji, Department of Radiology, Tianjin First Central Hospital; Tianjin Institute of Imaging Medicine; Tianjin Key Laboratory of Molecular Diagnosis and Treatment of Liver Cancer, Tianjin 300192, China
Co-first authors: Fang-Zhen Yang and Hui-Yu Li.
Author contributions: Yang FZ and Li HY curated the data and wrote the original draft, they contributed equally to this article, they are the co-first authors of this manuscript; Li HY, Li G, and Zhang YL performed the formal analysis; Yang FZ, Li G, Zhang YL, and Ji Q reviewed and edited the manuscript; Ji Q designed the research study and acquired funding; and all authors have read and approved the final manuscript.
AI contribution statement: The authors take full responsibility for all content. AI-assisted tools were used for language editing only; all outputs were reviewed and approved by the authors. AI was not involved in data generation, analysis, or interpretation.
Supported by Tianjin Key Medical Discipline Construction Project, No. TJYXZDXK-3-012B; Natural Science Foundation of Tianjin, No. 21JCYBJC01050; and Tianjin Health Research Project, No. TJWJ2025ZD005.
Institutional review board statement: This study was approved by the Medical Ethics Committee of Tianjin First Central Hospital, approval No. 2026-114.
Informed consent statement: The requirement for informed consent was waived because this was a retrospective analysis of anonymized clinical data that could not be traced back to individual patients.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
STROBE statement: The authors have read the STROBE Statement-checklist of items, and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the STROBE Statement-checklist of items.
Data sharing statement: The raw data supporting the conclusions of this article will be made available by the authors, without undue reservation.
Corresponding author: Qian Ji, Chief Physician, Department of Radiology, Tianjin First Central Hospital; Tianjin Institute of Imaging Medicine; Tianjin Key Laboratory of Molecular Dia
Received: June 22, 2026
Revised: August 3, 2026
Accepted: October 8, 2026
Published online: November 15, 2026
Processing time: 139 Days and 21.6 Hours
Revised: August 3, 2026
Accepted: October 8, 2026
Published online: November 15, 2026
Processing time: 139 Days and 21.6 Hours
Core Tip
Core Tip: This study identifies computed tomography based abdominal fat distribution phenotypes in type 2 diabetes mellitus that vary with disease duration. Cross sectionally observed pattern shows: Liver fat persists across all disease durations, pancreatic fat appears in shorter durations, and renal and skeletal muscle fat emerge in longer durations. These details are missed by conventional duration based classification. This imaging based approach provides a foundation for phenotype driven risk stratification.