Association of obesity with heart failure outcomes in 11 Asian regions: A cohort study

Abstract

BackgroundAsians are predisposed to a lean heart failure (HF) phenotype. Data on the ‘obesity paradox’, reported in Western populations, are scarce in Asia and have only utilised the traditional classification of body mass index (BMI). We aimed to investigate the association between obesity (defined by BMI and abdominal measures) and HF outcomes in Asia.Methods and findingsUtilising the Asian Sudden Cardiac Death in Heart Failure (ASIAN-HF) registry (11 Asian regions including Taiwan, Hong Kong, China, India, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia, Philippines, Japan, and Korea; 46 centres with enrolment between 1 October 2012 and 6 October 2016), we prospectively examined 5,964 patients with symptomatic HF (mean age 61.3 ± 13.3 years, 26% women, mean BMI 25.3 ± 5.3 kg/m2, 16% with HF with preserved ejection fraction [HFpEF; ejection fraction ≥ 50%]), among whom 2,051 also had waist-to-height ratio (WHtR) measurements (mean age 60.8 ± 12.9 years, 24% women, mean BMI 25.0 ± 5.2 kg/m2, 7% HFpEF). Patients were categorised by BMI quartiles or WHtR quartiles or 4 combined groups of BMI (low, <24.5 kg/m2 [lean], or high, ≥24.5 kg/m2 [obese]) and WHtR (low, <0.55 [thin], or high, ≥0.55 [fat]). Cox proportional hazards models were used to examine a 1-year composite outcome (HF hospitalisation or mortality). Across BMI quartiles, higher BMI was associated with lower risk of the composite outcome (ptrend < 0.001). Contrastingly, higher WHtR was associated with higher risk of the composite outcome. Individuals in the lean-fat group, with low BMI and high WHtR (13.9%), were more likely to be women (35.4%) and to be from low-income countries (47.7%) (predominantly in South/Southeast Asia), and had higher prevalence of diabetes (46%), worse quality of life scores (63.3 ± 24.2), and a higher rate of the composite outcome (51/232; 22%), compared to the other groups (p < 0.05 for all). Following multivariable adjustment, the lean-fat group had higher adjusted risk of the composite outcome (hazard ratio 1.93, 95% CI 1.17–3.18, p = 0.01), compared to the obese-thin group, with high BMI and low WHtR. Results were consistent across both HF subtypes (HFpEF and HF with reduced ejection fraction [HFrEF]; pinteraction = 0.355). Selection bias and residual confounding are potential limitations of such multinational observational registries.ConclusionsIn this cohort of Asian patients with HF, the ‘obesity paradox’ is observed only when defined using BMI, with WHtR showing the opposite association with the composite outcome. Lean-fat patients, with high WHtR and low BMI, have the worst outcomes. A direct correlation between high WHtR and the composite outcome is apparent in both HFpEF and HFrEF.Trial registrationAsian Sudden Cardiac Death in HF (ASIAN-HF) Registry ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT01633398

Diagnosis of obesity based on body composition‐associated health risks—Time for a change in paradigm

“…Similar results were obtained in patients with heart failure. 30 In these patients, the "obesity paradox" was observed only when defined using BMI, with waist-to-height ratio showing the opposite association with mortality or hospitalization due to heart failure. The authors also observed that "lean-fat patients," with high waist-to-height ratio and low BMI, had the worst outcomes.…”

<p>The Association of Subscapular Skinfold with All-Cause, Cardiovascular and Cerebrovascular Mortality</p>

“…24 Similar findings were reported in studies that used CHD, heart failure, atrial fibrillation, diabetes mellitus, and other disease conditions as outcomes. 6,7,11,14,25 This is likely because BMI being an inaccurate indicator of body fatness. 15 Skinfold thickness may serve as an alternative but its role in clinical practice and research investigation has not been confirmed.…”

“…However, "obesity paradox" has been consistently reported. [11][12][13] One of the essential explanations is that BMI fails to describe body fat distribution as an index of adiposity, 14,15 when studies have emphasized that the accumulation of visceral and ectopic fat is an independent risk marker of cardiovascular and metabolic morbidity and mortality. 2,3 Moreover, visceral and ectopic fat is usually measured by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computerized tomography (CT) imaging.…”

Emerging Role of Adipocyte Dysfunction in Inducing Heart Failure Among Obese Patients With Prediabetes and Known Diabetes Mellitus

“…Recent clinical findings have shown that dysregulation of adipocytokine production is a crucial factor contributing to the manifestation and progression of AO-induced metabolic and CV complications including HF ( 179 , 181 , 185 , 193 , 240 ). The impact of altered adipocytokine profile on CV remodeling in patients with several phenotypes of HF is remarkably variable and does not always relate to inducing inflammatory activation.…”