Effects of left ventricular geometry and obesity on mortality in women with normal ejection fraction

Left ventricular (LV) geometry is an independent predictor of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Although obesity is a known risk factor for cardiovascular diseases, studies have suggested a paradoxical relation between obesity and prognosis. We retrospectively assessed 26,126 female patients with normal LV ejection fraction to determine the impact of LV geometry, including normal structure, concentric remodeling, and eccentric or concentric LV hypertrophy, and obesity on mortality during an average follow-up of 1.7 years. Abnormal LV geometry occurred more commonly in obese (body mass index ≥30 kg/m 2 , n = 10,465) compared with nonobese (body mass index 2 , n = 15,661) patients (56% vs 47%, respectively, p