The Impact of Obesity on the Fibrostenosis Progression of Eosinophilic Esophagitis in a U.S. Veterans Cohort

AbstractWhether obesity is protective against progression of EoE is unknown. The aim  of this study was to assess factors that alter the progression of EoE and determine if BMI is correlated with reduced disease severity. In this retrospective analysis of the Department of Veterans Affairs electronic health records, patients with EoE who received at least one dilation were identif ied using ICD and CPT codes. Kaplan–Meier curves determined the relationship between BMI and time to second esophageal dilation as a measurement of severity of disease. Cox proportional hazards models assessed the risk of second dilation adjusted for potential confounders. Of 2890 patients with Eo E and at least one dilation, 40% were obese (n = 1165). There were no clinically significant differences in demographics between obese and non-obese patients. Non-obese patients were more likely to be smokers and had a higher mean average of the number of dilation visits compared to obese patients (p <  0.05). When stratified by obesity, non-obese individuals had a median time to next dilation of 6.53 years (95% CI (5.83, 7.79)) compared to 9.24 years for obese individuals (95% CI (7.40, 15.04)). When stratified by six BMI categories, median time to second dilation increased with increasing BM I. The hazard ratio of second dilation for obese individuals was 0.81 (95% CI (0.72–0.92)). EoE patients with a higher BMI were less likely to undergo a second dilation compared to those with a low...
Source: Dysphagia - Category: Speech-Language Pathology Source Type: research