Overweight and the heart

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The effect of overweight on the cardiovascular system has been controversial. It is known that overweight is associated with blood pressure elevation, but it is less clear whether the presence of overweight can have a more direct adverse impact on the heart. Yu et al evaluate measures of cardiac structure and function in a cross sectional study of overweight and normal weight subjects both with normal blood pressure. They found increased left ventricular mass and left atrial size in the overweight children. They also found differences in tissue doppler measures between the groups suggesting possible diastolic dysfunction. These results demonstrate that even in adolescents, overweight appears to have an impact on cardiac structure, and possibly function, which is independent of blood pressure elevation. However, in this study, systolic blood pressure was still a correlate of left atrial diameter indicating that changes in blood pressure, even within the normal range. may still be important.