Obesity Paradox and Epigenetics in Cardiac Surgery
Research type
Research Study
Full title
An observational case control study to identify the role of epigenetic regulation of genes responsible for energy metabolism and mitochondrial function in the obesity paradox in cardiac surgery.
IRAS ID
201185
Contact name
Gavin Murphy
Contact email
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 0 months, 0 days
Research summary
Elevated Body Mass Index (BMI) is an important risk factor for cardiovascular death, however recent studies have reported a paradoxical survival benefit for increased BMI/Obesity in cardiac surgery, as well as in patients with acute coronary syndromes, heart failure, diabetes and in patients requiring dialysis. It has been suggested that these results may be attributable to reverse epidemiology where patients that are underweight have worse outcomes attributable to frailty or cachexia, or to unmeasured confounding where obese patients are selected for surgery only if they are subjectively at lower risk; the fat fit that have high muscle mass, or those with high BMI that do not have metabolic syndrome (sarcopenic obesity). In complete contrast however, in a porcine model we demonstrated that high fat fed pigs developed obesity and were protected against post cardiac surgery acute kidney injury compared to lean controls. To reconcile these observations we conducted a series of preliminary analyses (unpublished).
REC name
North West - Preston Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
16/NW/0494
Date of REC Opinion
28 Jun 2016
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion