Relationship Between Obesity, Insulin Resistance, and Gastrointestinal Disorders Among Adult Patients With Established Cardiovascular Disease

Abdul Moqeet, Sindhu Nanjiani, Muhammad Imran Farooq, Ali Salman, Muhammad Faris Khan, Nida Gull Ashiq, Abdul Wahab

2026

Full text Open access: Gold Metadata (CSL-JSON)
DOI 10.7759/cureus.115506
Data confidence 70 medium
How this score is calculated

It is built from checkable properties of the record itself: whether the article has a DOI, how many independent sources confirmed its data, whether the required fields are filled in, and how recent the latest confirmation is. Disagreement between sources and a missing identifier lower it. A value of 80 or above means the record was published without further checking; 60 to 79 means it is published at reduced confidence, with a manual check advisable. A record verified by an editor by hand is never pushed below 90 by a recalculation. This scores our data about the article, not the article itself.

Abstract

Background Obesity and insulin resistance (IR) are major cardiometabolic abnormalities that frequently coexist with cardiovascular disease (CVD) and may contribute to gastrointestinal (GI) morbidity. Objective The objective of this study is to determine the relationship between obesity, insulin resistance, and gastrointestinal disorders, including gastroesophageal reflux symptoms, dyspepsia, abdominal bloating, constipation, diarrhea/irritable bowel symptoms, fatty liver disease, and gallstones, among adult patients with established cardiovascular disease. Methodology This cross-sectional analytical study was conducted at the Department of Gastroenterology of Sheikh Zayed Hospital, Lahore, from June 2025 to December 2025, among 216 adult patients with established cardiovascular disease. Cardiovascular disease was confirmed from documented medical records and previous cardiology evaluation, including a history of coronary artery disease, myocardial infarction, angina, percutaneous coronary intervention, coronary artery bypass grafting, or ischemic heart failure. Where available, the diagnosis was supported by relevant investigations such as electrocardiography, echocardiography, cardiac biomarkers, and coronary angiography. Demographic data, cardiovascular history, anthropometric measurements, laboratory parameters, and gastrointestinal symptoms were recorded using a structured proforma. Results The mean age of patients was 56.8 ± 10.9 years, and 130 (60.2%) were men. Obesity was present in 132 (61.1%) patients, central obesity in 145 (67.1%), and insulin resistance in 142 (65.7%). Overall, gastrointestinal disorders were present in 128 (59.3%) patients. The most common gastrointestinal complaints were gastroesophageal reflux symptoms, 72 (33.3%); dyspepsia, 64 (29.6%); fatty liver, 61 (28.2%); and abdominal bloating, 58 (26.9%). Patients with gastrointestinal disorders had significantly higher body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), fasting blood glucose (FBG), fasting insulin, and homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) values compared to those without gastrointestinal disorders (p < 0.001). Conclusion Gastrointestinal disorders were common among adult patients with established cardiovascular disease and were significantly associated with obesity and insulin resistance.