Bariatric Surgery in an Aging Population: What is an Appropriate Preoperative Workup?

Abstract

Obesity has been documented as a major modifiable risk factor for coronary heart disease, ventricular dysfunction, left ventricular hypertrophy, poor left ventricular systolic function and impairment of left ventricular diastolic function, congestive heart failure, stroke and cardiac arrhythmia by the AHA. It is believed that physical exam and EKG alone can underestimate the presence and extent of cardiac disease in the obese patient. 10,[21][22][23][24] Subtle EKG changes that are