Why the study?
Few studies have examined sex differences in left ventricular structure and physiology from early life stages.
Does elevated body mass index influence left ventricular mass and volumes differently between prepubertal boys and girls?
Cross-Sectional (n=934)
Does elevated body mass index influence left ventricular mass and volumes differently between prepubertal boys and girls?
Effect estimate: +2.94 g in boys vs +2.16 g in girls per 1 kg/m2 increase in BMI
p-value: p=<0.001
Childhood obesity is associated with early adverse structural cardiac remodeling, which is more pronounced in prepubertal boys, highlighting the need for early physical activity interventions to alter long-term cardiovascular risk trajectories.
Boys may face amplified cardiac remodeling from elevated BMI; extends cross-sectional associations but leaves open longitudinal outcomes.
Few studies have examined the sex differences in left ventricle (LV) structure and physiology from early life stages. We aimed to assess the role of sex and overweight/obesity on left ventricular mass (LVM) and LV volume in Chinese children without preexisting cardiovascular risk factors. We selected 934 healthy children aged 6-8 years from an existing cohort in Beijing, China. Linear regression models were used to regress body mass index (BMI), fat mass, systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, waist circumference, and visceral fat area (VFA) with LVM, left ventricle end-diastolic volume (LVEDV) and end-systolic volume (LVESV). Higher BMI, fat mass, waist circumference, VFA, and stroke volume (SV) predicted higher LVM, LVEDV, and LVESV in both sexes. Multivariable analysis showed that boys with an elevated BMI had greater LV hypertrophy. LVEDV and LVESV were higher among boys than among girls and increased with higher BMI in both boys and girls. LVEDV and LVESV were associated with VFA in boys. We observed sex differences in LVM, LVESV, and LVEDV among prepubertal children, independent of obesity, with higher values observed in boys. Sex differences in cardiac structure in children may help explain the higher incidence of cardiovascular disease in male adults. Whether interventions to reduce childhood obesity can improve the trajectory of cardiac dynamics is worth investigating.
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Xiao et al. (2023) conducted a cross-sectional in Healthy children without preexisting cardiovascular risk factors (n=934). Elevated Body Mass Index (BMI) vs. Normal weight / lower BMI was evaluated on Left ventricular mass (LVM) response to elevated BMI (+2.94 g in boys vs +2.16 g in girls per 1 kg/m2 increase in BMI, p=<0.001).
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