Overview
- Researchers analyzed cardiac MRI scans from 2,244 Hamburg City Health Study participants aged 46–78 without diagnosed cardiovascular disease.
- Higher waist-to-hip ratio was associated with concentric hypertrophy—thicker myocardium with smaller chamber volumes—whereas BMI more often tracked with enlarged chambers.
- Effects were stronger in men, particularly in the right ventricle, and included subtle tissue changes detectable only with advanced MRI.
- These were independent associations after adjustment for hypertension, smoking, diabetes and cholesterol, reflecting risk that BMI alone can miss.
- Waist-to-hip ratio classified more people as obese than BMI (91% of men and 64% of women vs 69% and 56%), prompting calls for routine WHR measurement and targeting abdominal fat; findings were presented at the RSNA meeting.