The Effects of Obesity on Longitudinal Ventricular and Atrial Strain in a Rural Population of Spanish Children and Adolescents, Evaluated by a New Strain Software.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES:Research on the relationship between body mass index (BMI) and strain values in children and adolescents is limited. Our aim was to analyse the relationship between BMI and strain values of both ventricles and left atrium in children and adolescents.METHODS:Both ventricles and left atrial strain values were compared among different BMI categories in children and adolescents from a town in the South of Spain.RESULTS:Of the 198 subjects, aged 6-17 years, 53% were of normal weight, 26% were overweight and 21% had obesity. Lower absolute values of left ventricular global longitudinal strain (25.9 ± 2.0% vs. 26.9 ± 2.2%, p = 0.002) and right ventricular free wall longitudinal strain (29.5 ± 4.2% vs. 30.8 ± 4.5%, p = 0.04) were found in subjects with obesity and overweight versus subjects with normal weight. A lower right ventricular four-chamber longitudinal strain was also observed in males with obesity and overweight (24.8 ± 3.3% vs. 26.4 ± 3.6%, p = 0.03). Statistically significant negative correlations of BMI were found for all ventricular, but not atrial, strain values in univariate analysis. This association turned non-significant for right ventricular four-chamber longitudinal strain in multivariate analysis.CONCLUSIONS:Utilizing this new strain software, children and adolescents with high BMI were associated with significantly lower values for left and right ventricular free wall longitudinal strain, without impact in left atrial strain.