Assessment of Superficial Fascia and Abdominal Fat of Anterior Abdominal Wall using Computed Tomography: A Retrospective Study

Introduction: The advancements in technologies have created new promenade pertaining to the anatomy of the anterior abdominal wall and body contouring surgery. This kindle the anatomist and surgeon to redefine the anatomy of the anterior abdominal wall. Anterior abdominal wall was routinely tutored as two layers, but the controversy regarding the existence and extent prevails. From the literature search, it was evident that preservation of Scarpa’s fascia is the pivot in determining the outcome of abdominal surgeries. Aim: To document the existence and extent of the Membranous Fascia of Scarpa (MFS) and compare the abdominal fat between age and sex-matched Computed Tomography (CT) images at 3 levels i.e., i) L1 vertebrae, ii) umbilicus and iii) anterior superior iliac spine and also to compare the distribution of abdominal fat. Materials and Methods: This retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted in collaboration with the Department of Radiology at Sri Manakula Vinayagar Medical College and Hospital, Puducherry, from November 2019 to December 2020. A total of 60 CT images, that were age and sex matched were collected from the Medical Records Department. Data were analysed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 24.0 for windows. Types and extent of fascia were expressed in percentage, fat distribution as mean. The difference in mean between two and three independent groups was made using the Student’s t-test. The statistical tests applied were two tailed and p-value