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Left ventricular hypertrophy evaluation in obese hypertensive patients: effect of left ventricular mass index

Eduardo Cantoni Rosa1, Valdir Ambrósio Moyses, Ricardo Cintra Sesso

  • 1Division of Nephrology, Kidney and Hypertension Hospital, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, Brasil. eduardocantoni@uol.com.br

Arquivos Brasileiros De Cardiologia
|May 16, 2002
PubMed

Insights

Indexing left ventricular mass (LVM) by height2, not body surface area (BSA), better detects left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) in obese individuals, both hypertensive and normotensive.

Area of Science:

  • Cardiology
  • Obesity Medicine
  • Diagnostic Imaging

Background:

  • Obesity is associated with cardiovascular changes, including left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH).
  • Accurate assessment of LVH in obese individuals is crucial for risk stratification and management.
  • Current methods for indexing left ventricular mass (LVM) may be influenced by body size variations.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To compare the effectiveness of two indexing methods for left ventricular mass (LVM) in obese individuals.
  • To evaluate LVM index in both hypertensive and normotensive obese populations.
  • To determine the optimal method for detecting LVH in obesity.

Main Methods:

  • M-mode echocardiography was used to assess LVM in 544 hypertensive and 106 normotensive patients.
  • LVM was indexed for body surface area (LVM/BSA) and for height squared (LVM/h2).
  • Comparisons were made across body mass index (BMI) subgroups (<27, 27-30, >=30 kg/m2).

Main Results:

  • LVM/BSA did not reveal significant differences between BMI subgroups.
  • LVM/h2 showed significantly increased values in higher BMI subgroups for both hypertensive and normotensive populations.
  • This suggests LVM/BSA may underestimate LVH in obese individuals.

Conclusions:

  • Left ventricular mass indexed by body surface area (LVM/BSA) may underestimate LVH in obese individuals, treating obesity as physiological.
  • Indexing LVM by height squared (LVM/h2) effectively highlights differences across BMI subgroups.
  • LVM/h2 appears more appropriate for detecting LVH in obese populations, improving diagnostic accuracy.
Abstract

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