Interpretation of the “obesity paradox”: A 30-year study in patients with cardiovascular disease

Association of sarcopenic obesity predicted by anthropometric measurements and 24-y all-cause mortality in elderly men: The Kuakini Honolulu Heart Program

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to investigate the association between anthropometric measurements of sarcopenic obesity and all-cause mortality.

METHODS

The study included 2309 Japanese-American men ages 71 to 93 y. Mortality data were available for up to 24 y of follow-up. Sarcopenic obesity defined by three patterns of obesity indexes (body mass index [BMI], percent body fat [%BF] and waist circumference [WC]) and skeletal muscle index estimated by anthropometric measurements.

RESULTS

Of the 2309 participants, 2210 deaths were reported during the mean follow-up period of 11.7 y. Risk for death was significantly increased with sarcopenia after adjusting for baseline age, lifestyle variables, hypertension, diabetes, and cognitive scores (hazard ratio [HR], 1.26; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.15-1.38). Risk for death was significantly decreased with obesity using WC and %BF to define obesity, but not BMI. Risk for death also was significantly increased in the sarcopenia group compared with the optimal group, regardless of which pattern of obesity indexes (BMI, %BF, and WC) was used. Risk for death was significantly increased in sarcopenic obesity defined by WC (HR, 1.19; 95% CI, 1.02-1.38), borderline in the BMI-defined group, and not significant in the %BF-defined group.

CONCLUSION

All-cause mortality was increased in men with sarcopenic obesity defined by WC, but not BMI and %BF. Sarcopenia was a stronger predictor of all-cause mortality in this cohort >70 y of age. These results suggest that anthropometric definitions for sarcopenia and sarcopenic obesity are clinically useful as a predictor of all-cause mortality.

Optimal Cutoffs of Cardiometabolic Risk for Postmenopausal Korean Women

PURPOSE

The purpose of the study was to identify the optimal cutoff values of indices for cardiometabolic risk in postmenopausal Korean women. Specifically, we intended to determine the cutoffs of waist circumference, waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), serum lipid profile, and homeostatic model of assessment-insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) for detecting metabolic syndrome (MetS), and metabolic obesity (MO).

METHODS

The study participants were 397 postmenopausal women. We defined MetS and MO with the International Diabetes Federation criteria except for waist circumference. A receive operating characteristic curve analysis was used to assess the accuracy of diagnostic indices for identifying MetS and MO. Cutoff values were obtained both from the point on the receive operating characteristic curve which was closest to (0,1) and from the Youden's index.

RESULTS

Among the participants, 34.5% and 73% were classified as having MetS and MO. The optimal cutoff of waist circumference and WHR were 81.9 cm [area under curve (AUC): 0.687, sensitivity: 61.7%, specificity: 68.9%], 0.87 (AUC: 0.660, sensitivity: 64.7%, Specificity: 60.2%) for MetS and 77.4 cm (AUC: 0.655, sensitivity: 65.6%, specificity: 57.8%), 0.86 (AUC: 0.680, sensitivity: 67.0%, specificity: 62.7%) for MO. Triglyceride to high-density lipoprotein ratio for MetS and MO were 2.11 (AUC: 0.838, sensitivity: 71.5%, specificity: 79.6%) and 1.59 (AUC: 0.725, sensitivity: 65.9%, specificity: 68.2%) respectively. The HOMA-IR for MetS was 1.36 (AUC: 0.773, sensitivity: 73%, specificity: 71.9%) and for MO was 1.17 (AUC: 0.713, sensitivity: 64.5%, specificity: 69.2%).

CONCLUSIONS

For postmenopausal women, we suggest waist circumference of 81.9 cm and WHR of 0.87 as criteria of MetS. However, women with waist circumference over 77.4 cm and WHR over 0.86 should be monitored for the future development of MetS.

Inverse relationship between body mass index and mortality in older nursing home residents: a meta-analysis of 19,538 elderly subjects

Body mass index (BMI) and mortality in old adults from the general population have been related in a U-shaped or J-shaped curve. However, limited information is available for elderly nursing home populations, particularly about specific cause of death. A systematic PubMed/EMBASE/CINAHL/SCOPUS search until 31 May 2014 without language restrictions was conducted. As no published study reported mortality in standard BMI groups (<18.5, 18.5-24.9, 25-29.9, ≥30 kg/m(2)), the most adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) according to a pre-defined list of covariates were obtained from authors and pooled by random-effect model across each BMI category. Out of 342 hits, 20 studies including 19,538 older nursing home residents with 5,223 deaths during a median of 2 years of follow-up were meta-analysed. Compared with normal weight, all-cause mortality HRs were 1.41 (95% CI = 1.26-1.58) for underweight, 0.85 (95% CI = 0.73-0.99) for overweight and 0.74 (95% CI = 0.57-0.96) for obesity. Underweight was a risk factor for higher mortality caused by infections (HR = 1.65 [95% CI = 1.13-2.40]). RR results corroborated primary HR results, with additionally lower infection-related mortality in overweight and obese than in normal-weight individuals. Like in the general population, underweight is a risk factor for mortality in old nursing home residents. However, uniquely, not only overweight but also obesity is protective, which has relevant nutritional goal implications in this population/setting.

A New Integrated Clinical-Biohumoral Model to Predict Functionally Significant Coronary Artery Disease in Patients With Chronic Chest Pain

BACKGROUND

In patients with chronic angina-like chest pain, the probability of coronary artery disease (CAD) is estimated by symptoms, age, and sex according to the Genders clinical model. We investigated the incremental value of circulating biomarkers over the Genders model to predict functionally significant CAD in patients with chronic chest pain.

METHODS

In 527 patients (60.4 years, standard deviation, 8.9 years; 61.3% male participants) enrolled in the European Evaluation of Integrated Cardiac Imaging (EVINCI) study, clinical and biohumoral data were collected.

RESULTS

Functionally significant CAD-ie, obstructive coronary disease seen at invasive angiography causing myocardial ischemia at stress imaging or associated with reduced fractional flow reserve (FFR < 0.8), or both-was present in 15.2% of patients. High-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, aspartate aminotransferase (AST) levels, and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) were the only independent predictors of disease among 31 biomarkers analyzed. The model integrating these biohumoral markers with clinical variables outperformed the Genders model by receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) (area under the curve [AUC], 0.70 [standard error (SE), 0.03] vs 0.58 [SE, 0.03], respectively, P < 0.001) and reclassification analysis (net reclassification improvement, 0.15 [SE, 0.07]; P = 0.04). Cross-validation of the ROC analysis confirmed the discrimination ability of the new model (AUC, 0.66). As many as 56% of patients who were assigned to a higher pretest probability by the Genders model were correctly reassigned to a low probability class (< 15%) by the new integrated model.

CONCLUSIONS

The Genders model has a low accuracy for predicting functionally significant CAD. A new model integrating HDL cholesterol, AST, and hs-CRP levels with common clinical variables has a higher predictive accuracy for functionally significant CAD and allows the reclassification of patients from an intermediate/high to a low pretest likelihood of CAD.

Body mass index and acute and long-term outcomes after acute myocardial infarction (from the Harmonizing Outcomes With Revascularization and Stents in Acute Myocardial Infarction Trial)

The clinical outcome of acute cardiovascular events may be more favorable in patients with a high body mass index (BMI), although obesity increases the risk for cardiovascular diseases. The authors sought to define the association between BMI and acute and long-term outcome of patients presenting within 12 hours of ST-segment myocardial infarction (STEMI) in a large multinational cohort. A total of 3,579 patients enrolled in the Harmonizing Outcomes with Revascularization and Stents in Acute Myocardial Infarction trial were stratified according to BMI quartiles: <24.5, 24.5 to <27.1, 27.1 to 30.1, and >30.1 kg/m(2) (quartiles 1, 2, 3, and 4, respectively). Death, myocardial reinfarction, ischemia-driven target vessel revascularization, stroke, and noncoronary artery bypass grafting-related major bleeding events were centrally adjudicated for the acute, 30 days, and yearly follow-up. Patients with a BMI in the highest quartile were younger than patients in the lower BMI quartiles and more frequently had hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and diabetes mellitus. Complete occlusions and noncalcified lesions were more common in patients with a high BMI. In-hospital mortality decreased with increasing BMI due to lower cardiac mortality (2.9%, 2.3%, 1.2%, and 1.0% for quartiles 1, 2, 3, and 4, respectively, p <0.05). Out-of-hospital 3-year mortality was also lower in higher-weight patients due to lower noncardiac mortality (4.2%, 2.6%, 2.3%, and 1.7% for quartiles 1 to 4, respectively, p = 0.01). After adjustment for covariates, BMI was no longer predictive of acute or long-term mortality after STEMI. In conclusion, as BMI increases, patients have a more extensive adjusted cardiovascular risk profile and disease burden and premature STEMI onset but similar adjusted acute and long-term outcomes.

The obesity paradox in men with coronary heart disease and heart failure: the role of muscle mass and leptin

AIMS

We have investigated the role of muscle mass, natriuretic peptides and adipokines in explaining the obesity paradox.

BACKGROUND

The obesity paradox relates to the association between obesity and increased survival in patients with coronary heart disease (CHD) or heart failure (HF).

METHODS

Prospective study of 4046 men aged 60-79 years followed up for a mean period of 11 years, during which 1340 deaths occurred. The men were divided according to the presence of doctor diagnosed CHD and HF: (i) no CHD or HF ii), with CHD (no HF) and (iii) with HF.

RESULTS

Overweight (BMI 25-9.9 kg/m(2)) and obesity (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m(2)) were associated with lower mortality risk compared to men with normal weight (BMI 18.5-24.9 kg/m(2)) in those with CHD [hazards ratio (HR) 0.71 (0.56,0.91) and 0.77 (0.57,1.04); p=0.04 for trend] and in those with HF [HR 0.57 (0.28,1.16) and 0.41 (0.16,1.09; p=0.04 for trend). Adjustment for muscle mass and NT-proBNP attenuated the inverse association in those with CHD (no HF) [HR 0.78 (0.61,1.01) and 0.96 (0.68,1.36) p=0.60 for trend) but made minor differences to those with HF [p=0.05]. Leptin related positively to mortality in men without HF but inversely to mortality in those with HF; adjustment for leptin abolished the BMI mortality association in men with HF [HR 0.82 (0.31,2.20) and 0.99 (0.27,3.71); p=0.98 for trend].

CONCLUSION

The lower mortality risk associated with excess weight in men with CHD without HF may be due to higher muscle mass. In men with HF, leptin (possibly reflecting cachexia) explain the inverse association.

Lower short- and long-term mortality associated with overweight and obesity in a large cohort study of adult intensive care unit patients

INTRODUCTION

Two thirds of United States adults are overweight or obese, which puts them at higher risk of developing chronic diseases and of death compared with normal-weight individuals. However, recent studies have found that overweight and obesity by themselves may be protective in some contexts, such as hospitalization in an intensive care unit (ICU). Our objective was to determine the relation between body mass index (BMI) and mortality at 30 days and 1 year after ICU admission.

METHODS

We performed a cohort analysis of 16,812 adult patients from MIMIC-II, a large database of ICU patients at a tertiary care hospital in Boston, Massachusetts. The data were originally collected during the course of clinical care, and we subsequently extracted our dataset independent of the study outcome.

RESULTS

Compared with normal-weight patients, obese patients had 26% and 43% lower mortality risk at 30 days and 1 year after ICU admission, respectively (odds ratio (OR), 0.74; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.64 to 0.86) and 0.57 (95% CI, 0.49 to 0.67)); overweight patients had nearly 20% and 30% lower mortality risk (OR, 0.81; 95% CI, 0.70 to 0.93) and OR, 0.68 (95% CI, 0.59 to 0.79)). Severely obese patients (BMI ≥ 40 kg/m2) did not have a significant survival advantage at 30 days (OR, 0.94; 95% CI, 0.74 to 1.20), but did have 30% lower mortality risk at 1 year (OR, 0.70 (95% CI, 0.54 to 0.90)). No significant difference in admission acuity or ICU and hospital length of stay was found across BMI categories.

CONCLUSION

Our study supports the hypothesis that patients who are overweight or obese have improved survival both 30 days and 1 year after ICU admission.