Valvular & structural heart diseaseCohort study
Metabolic obesity phenotypes and degenerative valvular heart disease: A cohort study
- Prospective cohort study
- UK Biobank
Authors' conclusion
Obesity is persistently associated with increased aortic valve pathology risk, indicating that MHO is not entirely benign. Concomitant metabolic dysfunction further compounds this risk
Study context
- Population
- UK Biobank participants categorised by Body Mass Index (BMI) and metabolic syndrome criteria
- Participants
- 487,443 participants
- Exposure
- Metabolic obesity phenotypes vs MHNO
- Outcome
- Degenerative valvular heart disease (VHD)
- Follow-up
- median 13.3-year follow-up
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
Degenerative VHD · median 13.3 years
Each group vs MHNOHazard ratio (95% CI)
MHO
1.12(1.07–1.17)
MUO
1.30(1.24–1.37)
MUNO
1.05(0.92–1.19)
- Participants developing degenerative valvular heart disease (VHD)
- 12,793 (2.6%)
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Further findings
| Outcome | HR (95% CI) | |
|---|---|---|
| AS — MHO vs MHNO | 1.42 (1.31–1.54) | |
| AS — MUO vs MHNO | 1.67 (1.32–2.11) | |
| AS, MUO with high genetic risk (PRS) · highest AS risk | 2.91 (2.51–3.36) | |
| 0.20.5125Hazard ratio (log scale) |
- Aortic stenosis (AS), metabolically unhealthy obese (MUO) with high genetic risk (polygenic risk scores (PRS)): no significant interaction (P-interaction=0.938)
Aortic regurgitation (AR) and mitral regurgitation (MR)
- Associations modest for AR and insignificant for MR
Proteomic signatures
- MUO had the most distinct proteomic signatures, overlapping AS-related proteins, enriched in immune-inflammation, extracellular matrix remodeling and MAPK signaling pathways
Original publication
Metabolic obesity phenotypes and degenerative valvular heart disease: A cohort study. Eur J Prev Cardiol. Published 16 September 2026. doi:10.1093/eurjpc/zwag492
Summarised from the published abstract; every number is checked against it