Bariatric surgery for severe obesity is associated with long-term weight loss and decreased overall mortality.

Compared with usual care, bariatric surgery was associated with reduced number of cardiovascular deaths and lower incidence of cardiovascular events in obese adults.

A longitudinal population study of 1462 women aged 38-60 was carried out in Gothenburg, Sweden, in 1968-9. In univariate analysis the ratio of waist to hip circumference showed a significant positive association with the 12 year incidence of myocardial infarction, angina pectoris, stroke, and death. The association with incidence of myocardial infarction remained in multivariate analysis and was independent of age, body mass index, smoking habit, serum cholesterol concentration, serum triglyceride concentration, and systolic blood pressure.The relation between the ratio of waist to hip circumference and the end points of myocardial infarction, angina pectoris, stroke, and death was stronger than for any other anthropometric variable studied. IntroductionThe possible relation between obesity and cardiovascular disease has been the subject of great controversy. Interest has been focused mainly on quantity of adipose tissue and less on its distribution. Krotkiewski et al showed in a cross sectional study