In order to examine the relationship between abdominal obesity and reflux esophagitis (RE), Zhan et al conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis.

A systematic search of PubMed, Web of Science, and Embase was conducted up to 28 March 2021, with the help of prespecified terms to look for studies evaluating the link between abdominal obesity and RE. Forty-two observational studies, including 11 cohort studies, were assessed.

There was a statistically significant association between abdominal obesity and RE, by both pooled odds ratios (ORs) (adjusted OR = 1.51, p < .001) as well as pooled standardized mean differences (SMDs) (SMD = 0.36, p < .001).

The significant relationship persisted with subgroup division. In subgroup analyses, researchers noted that study design, abdominal obesity measurement, covariate adjustment and sex were probable sources of between-study heterogeneity.

In the dose-response analyses, the risk of RE was found to escalate with the extent of abdominal obesity. The increasing trend was hastened as waist circumference (WC) reached 87.0 cm.

To conclude, there is a significant association between abdominal obesity and RE, and the risk of RE escalated with abdominal obesity, particularly when WC was more than 87.0 cm.

Source: Zhan J, Yuan M, Zhao Y, et al. Abdominal obesity increases the risk of reflux esophagitis: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Scand J Gastroenterol. 2022 Feb;57(2):131-142.