Overweight patients recover faster after stroke

摘要

Obesity has reached epidemic proportions globally, with more than 1 billion adults overweight and at least 300 million of them clinically obese. The obesity epidemic is not restricted to industrialized societies (1). This increase is often faster in developing countries than in the developed world. This rising trend in obesity parallels an impact on related morbidity. For example, a higher percentage of patients presenting with coronary heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, and stroke are in fact obese as well (2). The implication of obesity as a stroke risk factor has well been established. Specifically, obesity contributes to the development of cardiac and atherosclerotic complications leading to stroke. While obesity continues to be associated with adverse health consequences, there are emerging data leading to a reassessment of obesity and its impact on morbidity and mortality. One such wave of investigation comes from cardiology where the phrase "obesity paradox" has been coined (6,7,8,9,12). This term suggests that while overweight patients are more likely to contract a heart disease as compared to those with a healthier BMI, they often found to have a better prognosis once the heart disease develops. Many studies have openly suggested that obesity may offer a clinical advantage, as it relates to post-cardiac intervention, on morbidity, length of stay, and mortality. However to our knowledge, no large study exists which reviews the effect of weight on the outcome of individuals undergoing rehabilitation for a stroke.