TABLE 1.
Clinical characteristics of the study population and parameters of cardiac function
| Non‐obese (n = 50) | Obese (n = 100) | P‐value | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clinical characteristics | |||
| General characteristics | |||
| Age (years) | 50 (40–59) | 48 (42–50) | 0.02 * |
| Female (%) | 35 (70%) | 70 (70%) | >0.99 |
| Physical examination | |||
| Length (m) | 1.74 ± 0.1 | 1.71 ± 0.1 | 0.08 |
| Weight (kg) | 76 (64–82) | 123 (115–135) | <0.001 * |
| BMI (kg/m2) | 25 (22–28) | 42 (40–46) | <0.001 * |
| Systolic BP (mmHg) | 127 (118–136) | 140 (127–157) | <0.001 * |
| Diastolic BP (mmHg) | 78 (71–82) | 79 (72–88) | 0.11 |
| Waist circumference (cm) | 79 (74–89) | 131 (125–140) | <0.001 * |
| Heart rate (b.p.m.) | 64 ± 9 | 80 ± 13 | <0.001 * |
| Co‐morbidity | |||
| Diabetes mellitus | 0 | 22 (22%) | 0.007 * |
| Hypertension | 4 (8%) | 32 (32%) | 0.003 * |
| Hypercholesterolaemia | 5 (10%) | 18 (18%) | 0.21 |
| Current smoking | 7 (14%) | 17 (17%) | 0.63 |
| COPD | 1 (2%) | 5 (5%) | 0.39 |
| OSAS | 1 (2%) | 12 (12%) | 0.07 |
| Medication | |||
| Beta‐blockers | 0 | 8 (8%) | 0.03 |
| ACE inhibitors/ARBs | 2 (4%) | 24 (24%) | 0.008 * |
| Calcium channel blockers | 0 | 12 (12%) | 0.04 |
| Statins | 3 (6%) | 20 (20%) | 0.03 |
| Diuretics | 1 (2%) | 18 (18%) | 0.02 * |
| Insulin | 0 | 7 (7%) | 0.04 |
| Oral anti‐diabetics | 0 | 15 (15%) | 0.02 * |
| Blood tests | |||
| C‐reactive protein (mg/L) | 1 (0–2) | 6 (4–10) | <0.001 * |
| Glucose (mmol/L) | 5.1 (4.7–5.5) | 5.4 (4.8–6.2) | 0.006 * |
| HbA1c (mmol/mol) | 35 (33–37) | 39 (35–47) | <0.001 * |
| Creatinine (μmol/L) | 69 (65–75) | 72 (65–78) | 0.35 |
| eGFR (mL/min/1.73 m2) | 74 (69–79) | 90 (79–90) | <0.001 * |
| ALAT (U/L) | 22 (15–32) | 28 (20–37) | 0.64 |
| Apo‐lipoprotein B100 (g/L) | 0.90 (0.75–1.07) | 1.05 (0.91–1.30) | 0.007 * |
| Lipoprotein (a) (mg/L) | 172 (52–367) | 167 (71–522) | 0.80 |
| Total cholesterol (mmol/L) | 5.2 ± 1 | 5.3 ± 1 | 0.55 |
| LDL cholesterol (mmol/L) | 3.0 ± 1.0 | 3.2 ± 0.9 | 0.24 |
| HDL cholesterol (mmol/L) | 1.4 (0.94–1.80) | 1.1 (1.0–1.4) | <0.001 * |
| Triglycerides (mmol/L) | 1.25 (0.9–1.8) | 1.74 (1.3–2.6) | 0.01 * |
| Ferritin (μg/L) | 79 (34–149) | 90 (49–176) | 0.82 |
| Active vitamin B12 (pmol/L) | 96 (71–127) | 101 (70–130) | 0.002 * |
| Folic acid (nmol/L) | 17 (12–22) | 12 (8–16) | 0.002 * |
| Vitamin B1 (nmol/L) | 130 (98–144) | 140 (118–157) | 0.03 |
| Vitamin B6 (nmol/L) | 84 (74–114) | 69 (52–83) | 0.43 |
| Albumin (g/L) | 43 ± 2 | 41 ± 4 | <0.001 * |
| Magnesium (mmol/L) | 0.85 ± 0.05 | 0.81 ± 0.07 | <0.001 * |
| Vitamin D (nmol/L) | 60 (42–75) | 39 (27–61) | <0.001 * |
| Haemoglobin (mmol/L) | 8.6 (8.3–9.1) | 8.8 (8.2–9.2) | 0.21 |
| Erythrocytes (×1012/L) | 4.6 ± 0.4 | 4.9 ± 0.4 | <0.001 * |
| Thrombocytes (×109/L) | 231 ± 48 | 261 ± 70 | 0.009 * |
| Leucocytes (×109/L) | 5.9 (5.0–7.4) | 8.5 (6.9–9.6) | <0.001 * |
| TSH (mU/L) | 1.60 (1.1–1.9) | 1.63 (1.2–2.4) | 0.03 |
| Echocardiography parameters | |||
| LVM (g) | 148 (117–175) | 194 (149–231) | <0.001 * |
| LVM index (g/m2) | 79 (62–88) | 76 (64–92) | 0.16 |
| Holter monitoring | |||
| Average heart rate (b.p.m.) | 73 ± 10 | 83 ± 10 | <0.001 * |
| Minimal heart rate (b.p.m.) | 48 (41–50) | 52 (47–56) | <0.001 * |
| Maximum heart rate (b.p.m.) | 138 (125–155) | 136 (126–150) | 0.62 |
| SDNN (ms) | 160 (130–194) | 101 (71–141) | <0.001 * |
| SDNN index (ms) | 63 (49–79) | 47 (38–58) | <0.001 * |
| Parameters of cardiac function | |||
| Echocardiographic parameters | |||
| Mitral inflow E‐wave (cm/s) | 73 ± 13 | 69 ± 14 | 0.06 |
| Mitral inflow A‐wave (cm/s) | 64 ± 14 | 70 ± 14 | 0.003 * |
| E/A ratio | 1.20 (0.97–1.4) | 0.98 (0.87–1.1) | <0.001 * |
| Septal e′ velocity (cm/s) | 9 (7–10) | 8 (7–9) | 0.03 |
| Lateral e′ velocity (cm/s) | 13 (10–15) | 10 (8–13) | <0.001 * |
| E/e ratio | 8.0 (7.3–10) | 8.7 (7.2–10) | 0.25 |
| Deceleration time (s) | 0.18 (0.16–0.20) | 0.19 (0.17–0.22) | 0.25 |
| LA volume index (mL/m2) | 26 ± 6 | 26 ± 8 | 0.88 |
| TR velocity (cm/s) | 106 (89–199) | 99 (90–132) | 0.16 |
| Diastolic dysfunction (%) | 1 (2%) | 11 (11%) | 0.09 |
| LV ejection fraction (%) | 65 ± 5 | 57 ± 7 | <0.001 * |
| GLS (%) | −20 (−21 to −19) | −16 (−18 to −14) | <0.001 * |
| Blood tests | |||
| BNP (pmol/L) | 6 (3–9) | 5 (3–8) | 0.59 |
| Hs troponin I positive (%) | 0 | 1 (1%) | 0.37 |
| Holter monitoring | |||
| Total PAC per 24 h (n) | 9 (3–23) | 10 (2–34) | 0.11 |
| Total PVC per 24 h (n) | 4 (1–17) | 3 (0–22) | 0.69 |
| Supraventricular arrhythmia (%) | 0 | 1 (1%) | 0.37 |
| Ventricular arrhythmia (%) | 1 (2%) | 0 | 0.16 |
ACE, angiotensin‐converting enzyme; ALAT, alanine aminotransferase; ARBs, angiotensin II receptor blockers; A‐wave, late diastolic transmitral flow velocity; BMI, body mass index; BNP, brain natriuretic peptide; BP, blood pressure; COPD, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; e′, early diastolic mitral annular velocity; eGFR, estimated glomerular filtration rate; E‐wave, early diastolic transmitral flow velocity; GLS, global longitudinal strain; HbA1c, glycated haemoglobin; HDL, high‐density lipoprotein; LA volume index, left atrial volume index; LDL, low‐density lipoprotein; LV, left ventricular; LVM index, left ventricular mass index; LVM, left ventricular mass; OSAS, obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome; PAC, premature atrial contraction; PVC, premature ventricular contraction SDNN index, mean of the standard deviations of all the NN intervals for each 5 min segment of a 24 h heart rate variability recording; SDNN, standard deviation of NN intervals; TR velocity, tricuspid regurgitation; TSH, thyroid‐stimulating hormone.
Differences between obesity patients and non‐obese controls. Values represent mean ± SD, median (Q1–Q3) or n (%). P‐values displayed were analysed by using generalized linear mixed models. Global longitudinal strain was available in 49 non‐obese controls and in 94 obesity patients. Left ventricular ejection fraction was available in 49 non‐obese controls and in 95 obesity patients.
Bold values are statistically significant at p<0.05; the bold values marked by * remain statistically significant after Benjamini – Hochberg correction.