Higher plasma leptin levels are associated with reduced left ventricular mass and left ventricular diastolic stiffness in black women: insights from the Genetic Epidemiology Network of Arteriopathy (GENOA) study

Our previous experimental animal data suggest a beneficial effect of leptin on LV structure and function. We hypothesized that leptin levels are associated with lower LV mass and myocardial stiffness which are important risk factors for the development of heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF). We evaluated 1172 blacks, in which the prevalence of HFpEF is quite high, with preserved LV ejection fraction (EF > 50%) from the Genetic Epidemiology Network of Arteriopathy Study (mean age 62.9 years, 72% women), a community-based study to identify genes influencing blood pressure and target organ damage due to hypertension. Associations between leptin levels and indices of LV structure and function were evaluated using generalized estimating equations accounting for clustering in siblings. LV myocardial stiffness was evaluated using diastolic wall strain (DWS) measured by echocardiography. Analyses were stratified by sex because leptin levels were three times higher in women than men (p