SynthesisPloS one2013
The effect of exercise on visceral adipose tissue in overweight adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Synthesis in PloS one, 2013. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 136 papers, 17 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
136 citing papers in PubMed, 17 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 315 citations in OpenAlex.
- EffectS of Lifestyle Interventions in Older PEople With Obesity (Effective SLOPE): a Systematic Review With Network Meta-Analyses.Obesity reviews : an official journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity · 2026Pooled it
- A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Semaglutide Effects on Adipose Tissue and Emerging Effects on Brain and Cognition.Obesity reviews : an official journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity · 2026Pooled it
- Effects of exercise intervention on glucose and lipid metabolism in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus complicated by non-alcoholic fatty liver disease: a three-level meta-analysis.Frontiers in nutrition · 2026Pooled it
- Combined exercise training and dietary interventions versus independent effect of exercise on ectopic fat in individuals with overweight and obesity: a systematic review, meta-analysis, and meta-regression.Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition · 2025Pooled it
- Effect of resistance training volume on body adiposity, metabolic risk, and inflammation in postmenopausal and older females: Systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Journal of sport and health science · 2024Pooled it
- Obesity in South and Southeast Asia-A new consensus on care and management.Obesity reviews : an official journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity · 2023Guideline
- Effect of aerobic exercise on waist circumference in adults with overweight or obesity: A systematic review and meta-analysis.Obesity reviews : an official journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity · 2022Pooled it
- Resistance training effectiveness on body composition and body weight outcomes in individuals with overweight and obesity across the lifespan: A systematic review and meta-analysis.Obesity reviews : an official journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity · 2022Pooled it
- Impact of different training modalities on anthropometric outcomes in patients with obesity: A systematic review and network meta-analysis.Obesity reviews : an official journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity · 2021Pooled it
- Effect of exercise intervention dosage on reducing visceral adipose tissue: a systematic review and network meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.International journal of obesity (2005) · 2021Pooled it
- Effects of Exercise Interventions on Weight, Body Mass Index, Lean Body Mass and Accumulated Visceral Fat in Overweight and Obese Individuals: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021Pooled it
- Digital exercise interventions for improving measures of central obesity: a systematic review.International journal of public health · 2020Pooled it
- Effect of Exercise and Pharmacological Interventions on Visceral Adiposity: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Long-term Randomized Controlled Trials.Mayo Clinic proceedings · 2019Pooled it
- Therapeutic Treatment for Abdominal Obesity in Adults.Deutsches Arzteblatt international · 2018Pooled it
- Effect of High-Intensity Interval Training on Total, Abdominal and Visceral Fat Mass: A Meta-Analysis.Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) · 2018Pooled it
- Physical activity, cardiorespiratory fitness and risk of cutaneous malignant melanoma: Systematic review and meta-analysis.PloS one · 2018Pooled it
- Subcutaneous fat loss is greater than visceral fat loss with diet and exercise, weight-loss promoting drugs and bariatric surgery: a critical review and meta-analysis.International journal of obesity (2005) · 2017Pooled it
- Effects of tumour necrosis factor and interleukin-6 inhibitor therapy on exercise-related visceral adipose tissue reduction in rheumatoid arthritis.Experimental physiology · 2026Trial
- An Energy-Reduced Mediterranean Diet, Physical Activity, and Body Composition: An Interim Subgroup Analysis of the PREDIMED-Plus Randomized Clinical Trial.JAMA network open · 2023Trial
- Effects of High-Intensity Resistance Training on Visceral Adipose Tissue and Abdominal Aortic Calcifications in Older Men with Osteosarcopenia - Results from the FrOST Study.Clinical interventions in aging · 2023Trial
76 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors at 4 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Excessive visceral adipose tissue appears to trigger a cascade of metabolic disturbances that seem to coexist with ectopic fat storage in muscle, liver, heart and the ß-cell. Therefore, the reduction of visceral adipose tissue potentially plays a pivotal role in the treatment of the metabolic syndrome. The purpose of this systematic review and meta-analysis is to describe the overall effect of exercise on visceral adipose tissue and to provide an overview of the effect of different exercise regimes, without caloric restriction, on visceral adipose tissue in obese persons. A systematic literature search was performed according to the PRISMA statement for reporting systematic reviews and meta-analyses. The initial search resulted in 87 articles after removing duplicates. After screening on title, abstract and full-text 15 articles (totalling 852 subjects) fulfilled the a priori inclusion criteria. The quality of each eligible study was assessed in duplicate with "The Critical Review Form for Quantitative Studies". Using random-effects weights, the standardized mean difference (Hedge's g) of the change in visceral adipose tissue was -0.497 with a 95% confidence interval of -0.655 to -0.340. The Z-value was -6.183 and the p-value (two tailed) was <0.001. A subgroup analysis was performed based on gender, type of training and intensity. Aerobic training of moderate or high intensity has the highest potential to reduce visceral adipose tissue in overweight males and females. These results suggest that an aerobic exercise program, without hypocaloric diet, can show beneficial effects to reduce visceral adipose tissue with more than 30 cm(2) (on CT analysis) in women and more than 40 cm(2) in men, even after 12 weeks.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.