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Abdominal obesity and structure and function of the heart in healthy male Koreans: The ARIRANG study

Jung-Woo Son1, Joong Kyung Sung, Jun-Won Lee

  • 1aDepartment of Internal Medicine, Division of Cardiology, Yonsei University, Wonju College of Medicine, Wonju bDivision of Cardiology, Andong Medical Group Hospital, Andong cDepartment of Preventive Medicine and Institute of Occupational Medicine dInstitute of Genomic Cohort, Yonsei University, Wonju College of Medicine, Wonju, Republic of Korea.

Medicine
|September 30, 2016
PubMed

Insights

Central obesity, measured by waist circumference, is linked to significant geometric and functional heart changes in healthy men. These include enlarged left atrium and ventricle, and diastolic dysfunction, even in individuals without cardiovascular disease.

Area of Science:

  • Cardiology
  • Obesity Research
  • Echocardiography

Background:

  • Central obesity is a significant risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD).
  • Limited data exists on the specific cardiac structural and functional alterations associated with central obesity.
  • Understanding these changes is crucial for early CVD risk assessment.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the association between abdominal obesity and cardiac geometric and functional changes in healthy males.
  • To determine if central obesity predicts cardiac alterations independently of general obesity.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized data from 1460 healthy males (aged 40-70) without known CVD.
  • Employed 2D echocardiography and tissue Doppler imaging to assess left atrial (LA) and left ventricular (LV) geometry and function.
  • Analyzed associations with increasing tertiles of waist circumference (WC).

Main Results:

  • Higher waist circumference tertiles correlated with increased LA volume, LV end-diastolic dimension, LV mass, and prolonged deceleration time of the E wave.
  • Higher WC was associated with a lower E/A ratio, indicating diastolic dysfunction.
  • Significant odds ratios for LA enlargement, LV hypertrophy, LV enlargement, and diastolic dysfunction were observed in the highest WC tertile compared to the lowest.
  • These associations remained significant after stratification by body mass index.

Conclusions:

  • Central obesity is associated with significant adverse geometric and functional changes in the left atrium and left ventricle in healthy men.
  • Abdominal obesity appears to be a stronger predictor of these cardiac alterations than general obesity.
  • Findings highlight the importance of monitoring central adiposity for cardiovascular risk stratification.

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