Cardiac Remodeling in Obesity

The dramatic increase in the prevalence of obesity and its strong association with cardiovascular disease have resulted in unprecedented interest in understanding the effects of obesity on the cardiovascular system. A consistent, but puzzling clinical observation is that obesity confers an increased susceptibility to the development of cardiac disease, while at the same time affording protection against subsequent mortality (termed the obesity paradox). In this review we focus on evidence available from human and animal model studies and summarize the ways in which obesity can influence structure and function of the heart. We also review current hypotheses regarding mechanisms linking obesity and various…