Clinical, Morphological and Morphometric Analysis of the Interatrial Septum in Patients with Coronary Heart Disease and Obesity

INTRODUCTION: Obesity is an important factor that facilitates the development of lipomatosis and fibrosis of the interatrial septum (IAS). Currently, non-invasive methods for assessing these pathological conditions are being actively developed. To introduce the developed methods in routine clinical practice, it is necessary to confirm the comparability of their results with the results of morphological studies.

AIM: To conduct clinical, morphological and morphometric analysis of the IAS in patients with coronary heart disease (CHD) and obesity.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study included 116 patients with the diagnosis of CHD, who underwent anthropometric measurements and echocardiography (EchoCG). Morphological and morphometric examinations were conducted on the material taken on autopsy from 74 patients with the main diagnosis of CHD. All patients were diagnosed with arterial hypertension.

RESULTS: Based on body mass index, patients with degree 1 obesity predominated. Based on EchoCG results, thickness of IAS in the group of patients with abdominal obesity was greater than in the group of patients without abdominal obesity. In morphometric examination, the percentage of adipose tissue in the IAS was higher in the group of patients with obesity than in the group without obesity.

CONCLUSIONS: The thickness of IAS is associated with increased parameters of waist circumference, body mass index and epicardial fat, based on the results of EchoCG. In the morphological examination, an increase in the thickness of epicardial fat and IAS was recorded in patients with obesity. Based on the morphometry data, the percentage of adipose tissue in histological samples of IAS was statistically higher in the group of patients with CHD and abdominal obesity than in patients without obesity (p=0.0002).