Impact of obesity on outcomes of patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome: a retrospective analysis of a large clinical database

Abstract

Objective: To evaluate the link between obesity and mortality in patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Methods: We performed a retrospective cohort study of a large clinical database. A Cox proportional hazards regression model was used to calculate the hazard ratio (HR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) for the relationship between body mass index (BMI) and mortality. The primary endpoint was 30-day death rate and the secondary endpoints were 90-day and 1‑year mortality. Results: Overall, 418 patients with ARDS were enrolled in the study, including 185 women and 233 men (age: 70.7 ± 44.1 years; BMI: 28.7 ± 8.1 kg/m2). Compared with patients with normal weight, obese patients were younger (60.1 ± 13.7, p = 0.003) and a higher percentage of these patients were women (51.3% vs. 49.0%, p = 0.001). The HRs (95% CI) of 30-day mortality in the underweight, overweight, and obese populations were 1.82 (0.85, 3.90), 0.59 (0.29, 1.20), and 3.85 (1.73, 8.57), respectively, after adjustment for other confounding factors. A similar pattern was also seen for death after 90 days and after 1 year. A U-shaped association between BMI and 30-day mortality was discovered by curve fitting. Conclusion: Obesity had a significant impact on the short- and long-term mortality in patients with ARDS. There was a U-shaped relationship between BMI and mortality, while a higher BMI was associated with an increased risk of death in patients with ARDS.