Cardiovascular impact of the pediatric obesity epidemic: higher left ventricular mass is related to higher body mass index.

OBJECTIVE: To compare secular changes in body mass index (BMI) and left ventricular mass (LVM) in today's children versus children of a generation earlier.

STUDY DESIGN: All healthy patients aged 2 to 19 years who underwent echocardiography at a single US academic medical center in 1986 to 1989 (prior era) and 2008 (current era) were included in this retrospective cross-sectional study. BMI, BMI z score, LVM indexed to height (LVMI), LVM z score, and relative wall thickness were calculated. Cardiac geometries were assigned based on LVM z score and relative wall thickness and classified as normal, concentric hypertrophy, eccentric hypertrophy, or concentric remodeling. Stepwise regression analysis was performed to identify determinants of LVMI.

RESULTS: There were 350 subjects in the prior era and 350 age- and sex-matched subjects in the current era. Mean BMI and LVMI were both significantly higher in the current era than in the prior era (BMI, 19.9 ± 5.6 kg/m(2) vs 18.1 ± 3.8 kg/m(2), P = .0004; LVMI, 32.7 ± 7.8 g/m(2.7) vs 31.5 ± 8.1 g/m(2.7); P = .02). Determinants of LVMI in both eras were BMI z score, younger age, male sex, and African-American race.

CONCLUSIONS: Today's children have higher BMI, LVMI, and predicted cardiovascular risk than their counterparts a generation earlier. Reversal of these trends is needed, and intervention is required.