title: Epidemiology of left ventricular hypertrophy in hypertension: implications for the clinic.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) is a common complication to hypertension, indicating the presence of hypertensive heart disease, which puts the patient at a very high risk for subsequent clinical cardiovascular events like sudden cardiac death, stroke, myocardial infarction and heart failure.
  
  
  METHODS
  The epidemiology of LVH has changed in recent years as a consequence of the development of new diagnostic tools and demographic changes in hypertensive populations. Expert commentary: In individual hypertensive patients, the presence and type of LVH and associated systolic and diastolic myocardial dysfunction is modified by the co-presence of other cardiovascular risk factors and comorbidities and as well as activation of the reninangiotensin-aldosterone system and other molecular mechanisms involved in LVH pathophysiology. The purpose of this review is to give a clinical update on LVH in hypertension.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Heart Disease , Haukeland University Hospital , Bergen , Norway.
authors.forename: Dana
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Cramariuc
authors.affiliation: b Department of Clinical Science , University of Bergen , Bergen , Norway.
authors.forename: Eva
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Gerdts
mesh_terms: D016757:Death, Sudden, Cardiac / Q000453:epidemiology; D006333:Heart Failure / Q000209:etiology; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000503:physiopathology*; D017379:Hypertrophy, Left Ventricular / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology; D009203:Myocardial Infarction / Q000453:epidemiology; D009206:Myocardium / Q000473:pathology; D012307:Risk Factors; D020521:Stroke / Q000453:epidemiology; D018487:Ventricular Dysfunction, Left / Q000453:epidemiology*
keywords: Left ventricular hypertrophy; arterial hypertension; echocardiography; hypertensive heart disease; left ventricular concentric geometry; left ventricular diastolic function; left ventricular systolic function; myocardial function; obesity; sex