Effects of body mass index on left ventricular function: An echocardiographic comparison between obese and nonobese individuals
Authors:
Open Access
- 28 December 2025
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Wiley in Physiological Reports
- Vol. 13 (24) , e70705
Abstract
Obesity is linked to structural and functional cardiac changes. This study assessed the impact of body mass index (BMI) on left ventricular (LV) function. A cross‐sectional study included 100 adults (50 obese and 50 nonobese), matched for age and sex. Echocardiographic parameters, end‐diastolic volume (EDV), end‐systolic volume (ESV), ejection fraction (EF), E/A, E/e ratios, Interventricular Septal thickness in Diastole (IVSd), stroke volume (SV), and cardiac output (CO), were measured by a blinded cardiologist using American Society of Echocardiography (guidelines. Spearman's correlation and multivariable regression evaluated associations between BMI and LV parameters. Obese participants had higher EDV (100.0 ± 23.3 vs. 84.6 ± 25.8 mL), ESV (35.6 ± 10.0 vs. 30.4 ± 12.5 mL), IVSd (9.33 ± 1.53 vs. 8.37 ± 0.91 mm), and SV (67.7 ± 15.2 vs. 57.8 ± 13.9 mL) than nonobese participants (all p < 0.05). EF and E/A ratio were similar. BMI correlated positively with EDV and ESV, negatively with E/A ratio, and independently predicted higher EDV and ESV. Obesity is associated with increased LV volumes, septal thickness, and diastolic dysfunction while preserving systolic function, highlighting the importance of early cardiac evaluation in obese adults.Keywords
This publication has 27 references indexed in Scilit:
- Early Subclinical Left-Ventricular Dysfunction in Obese Nonhypertensive Children: A Tissue Doppler Imaging StudyPediatric Cardiology, 2013
- Cardiac Remodeling in ObesityCirculation: Cardiovascular Imaging, 2013
- Strain Imaging in Morbid Obesity: Insights Into Subclinical Ventricular DysfunctionClinical Cardiology, 2011
- Effect of Obesity and Overweight on Left Ventricular Diastolic FunctionJACC, 2011
- The role of tissue Doppler study in the assessment of left ventricular dysfunction in obesityActa Cardiologica, 2008
- Cardiac Remodeling in ObesityPhysiological Reviews, 2008
- Effect of Obesity on Left Ventricular Structure and Myocardial Systolic Function: Assesment by Tissue Doppler Imaging and Strain/Strain Rate ImagingEchocardiography, 2007
- Association of Obesity With Left Ventricular Remodeling and Diastolic Dysfunction in Patients Without Coronary Artery DiseaseThe American Journal of Cardiology, 2006
- Alterations in left ventricular structure and function in young healthy obese womenJACC, 2004
- Separate and joint influences of obesity and mild hypertension on left ventricular mass and geometry: The framingham heart studyJACC, 1992