title: Economic burden of cardiovascular disease associated with excess body weight in U.S. adults.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Excess body weight (EBW), which continues to become more prevalent, is a clear contributor to cardiovascular disease (CVD), the leading cause of death and disability among U.S. adults. Information on the economic impact of CVD associated with EBW is lacking, however.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To estimate the direct medical costs of CVD associated with EBW.
  
  
  METHODS
  We conducted a population-based analysis of direct medical costs by linking the 1995 National Health Interview Survey and the 1996 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey. The study subjects are adults (aged > or =25 years, excluding pregnant women) in the non-institutionalized, civilian population in 1996.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The prevalence of CVD among people in the normal weight (body mass index [BMI] > or =18.5 to <25), overweight (BMI > or =25 to <30), and obese (BMI > or =30) groups was 20%, 28%, and 39%, respectively. There were 12.95 million CVD cases among overweight people, more than 25% of which was associated with overweight. There were 9.3 million CVD cases among obese people, of which more than 45% was associated with obesity. This extra disease burden led to $22.17 billion in direct medical costs in 1996 ($31 billion in 2001 dollars, 17% of the total direct medical cost of treating CVD).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The strong positive association between EBW and CVD, and the significant economic impact of EBW-associated CVD demonstrate the need to prevent EBW among U.S. adults.
authors.affiliation: National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, USA. gbw9@cdc.gov
authors.forename: Guijing
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Zhi-Jie
authors.initials: ZJ
authors.lastname: Zheng
authors.forename: Gregory
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Heath
authors.forename: Carol
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Macera
authors.forename: Mike
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Pratt
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Buchner
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001835:Body Weight; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000191:economics* / Q000209:etiology*; D003365:Costs and Cost Analysis; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity / Q000150:complications*; D014481:United States