Impact of long-term burden of excessive adiposity and elevated blood pressure from childhood on adulthood left ventricular remodeling patterns: the Bogalusa Heart Study.

Background: Cardiovascular risk factors are associated with left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH), but little is known regarding related impact of longitudinal measures of childhood adiposity and LV hemodynamic variables.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to examine the impact of cumulative long-term burden and trends of excessive adiposity and elevated blood pressure (BP) during childhood on adulthood LVH and LV geometric remodeling patterns.

Methods: This longitudinal study consisted of 1,061 adults, age 24 to 46 years, who had been examined 4 or more times for body mass index (BMI) and BP starting in childhood, with a mean follow-up of 28.0 years. The area under the curve (AUC) was calculated as a measure of long-term burden (total AUC) and trends (incremental AUC) of BMI and BP from childhood to adulthood. Four LV geometric types were defined-normal, concentric remodeling (CR), eccentric hypertrophy (EH), and concentric hypertrophy (CH)-all on the basis of LV mass indexed for body height (m(2.7)) and relative wall thickness.

Results: Higher values of BMI and systolic and diastolic BP in childhood and adulthood, as well as total AUC and incremental AUC, were all significantly associated with higher LV mass index and LVH, adjusted for race, sex, and age. In addition, higher values of BMI and BP in childhood and adulthood, total AUC, and incremental AUC were significantly associated with EH and CH but not with CR. Importantly, all of these measures of BMI had a consistently and significantly greater influence on EH than did measures of BP.

Conclusions: These findings indicate that the adverse influence of excessive adiposity and elevated BP levels on LVH begins in childhood.