[Cardiopulmonary function and exercise capacity in patients with morbid obesity].
OBJECTIVE
The effect of obesity on cardiac function is still under discussion. The objective of this study was to assess cardiopulmonary capacity in morbidly obese patients. Patients and method. A symptom-limited cardiopulmonary exercise stress test was carried out in 31 morbidly obese patients (BMI 50 9 kg/m2) and 30 normal controls (BMI 24 2 kg/m2. Cardiovascular function was evaluated using the oxygen pulse (oxygen uptake/heart rate).


RESULTS
There were no differences in age, sex and height between both groups. During the effort the obese subjects presented greater oxygen uptake, heart rate, systolic arterial pressure and minute ventilation and shorter test duration than control group (14 3 vs 27 4 min; p < 0.001). Oxygen pulse values were higher in obese patients. However, after oxygen uptake indexation by fat free mass, these differences disappeared, suggesting a similar cardiovascular function. At the end of the exercise, the control group reached 96% of their age-predicted maximal heart rate and their respiratory exchange ratio was 1 0.2. Obese patients only reached 86% and 0.87 0.2, respectively.


CONCLUSIONS
Due to their need of more energy output to move total body mass morbidly obese patients have a reduced exercise capacity. They finish the test having done a submaximal exercise. However, during this effort they show a normal cardiopulmonar capacity.
Serés
Luis
L
Servicios de Cardiología. Hospital Universitario Germans Trias I Pujol. Badalona. Barcelona. España. seres@hugtip.scs.es
López-Ayerbe
Jordi
J
Coll
Ramón
R
Rodríguez
Oriol
O
Manresa
José M
JM
Marrugat
Jaume
J
Alastrue
Antonio
A
Formiguera
Xavier
X
Valle
Vicente
V
D000328:Adult; D001823:Body Composition / Q000502:physiology; D015992:Body Mass Index; D005080:Exercise Test; D017079:Exercise Tolerance / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006339:Heart Rate / Q000502:physiology; D006439:Hemodynamics / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009767:Obesity, Morbid / Q000503:physiopathology*; D010100:Oxygen / Q000097:blood; D015656:Respiratory Mechanics / Q000502:physiology*
D010100:Oxygen