The relation between body mass index and end organ damage in white coat hypertension

Objective: White coat hypertension (WCH) is characterized by blood pressure, which is high in the outpatient clinic and normal either on ambulatory blood pressure (BP) monitoring or home BP monitoring. In this study, our objective was to investigate the effects of obesity on end organ damage and the correlation between body mass index (BMI) and end organ damage caused by WCH. Patients and Methods: Individuals, who applied to our outpatient clinic due to other complaints or who were not diagnosed with or treated for hypertension, were enrolled in our study. Based on daytime values, systolic blood pressures below 135mmHg and diastolic blood pressures below 85mmHg were considered as WCH. The patients were examined for the findings of end organ damage. The left ventricular mass (LVM) was measured with echocardiography. Findings of hypertensive retinopathy were evaluated and albumin levels were measured. Results: The mean left ventricular mass index (LVMI) and LVM values were 96.29 +/- 25.6g/m(2) and 170.87 +/- 50.17g respectively. The rate of hypertensive retinopathy was 17%. We determined a significant correlation between BMI and LVMI independently from blood pressure levels. Conclusion: There are conflicting conclusions about the risks related to WCH. However, several types of end organ damage can be observed independently from the blood pressure levels in this group of patients. Cardiac failure is more common and has an early onset in obese patients with WCH. In conclusion, end organ damage may emerge during the follow-up of WCH patients without a significant change in the blood pressure values.