Obesity and Preclinical Changes of Cardiac Geometry and Function

Overweight and obesity are rapidly increasing in prevalence due to adoption of the westernized life style in Korea. Obesity is strongly associated with the development of cardiovascular risk factors such as diabetes, hypertension, and dyslipidemia. In addition, accumulating evidence suggests that obesity per se has a direct effect on cardiac functional and structural changes that may not be the result of atherosclerosis. In this review, we focus on the view that obesity can influence on the structural and functional changes of the heart, drawing evidence from human and animal studies. We also review influencing factors such as physical, neurohormonal, and metabolic alterations that are associated with changes of the heart in obesity.