Best predictions were found at intervertebral spaces L3-L4 for females (σ 5 = 688 ml, σ 1 = 832 ml) and L1-L2 for males (σ 5 = 846 ml, σ 1 = 992 ml), irrespective of age. In conclusion, VAT volumes in morbidly obese patients can be reliably predicted by multiplying the segmented VAT area at a gender-specific lumbar reference level with a fixed scaling factor and effective slice thickness. Obesity is a worldwide increasing healthcare problem. In the United States, for example, over two thirds of the adult population are either overweight (33%, BMI: 25-30 kg/m 2 ), obese (35%, 30-40 kg/m 2 ) or morbidly obese (6%, > 40 kg/m 2 ) 1 . While prevalence of obesity is still rising, in particular the morbid form 2 , more and more is known about its association with an increased overall mortality, often caused by cardiovascular diseases, diabetes or hypertension Quantification of abdominal VAT volumes by cross-sectional imaging, typically by computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), however, is generally time-consuming 7-9 . Various methods have already been proposed to estimate total VAT volumes from simple measurements on a limited number of slices. Studies using single or five slice VAT areas for VAT volume prediction have mainly focused on patients with BMI values below 40 kg/m 2 and data for the morbidly obese are lackin
