Abstract

Obesity is one of the chronic non-communicable diseases, posing as a global health hazard. Obesity is found to decrease the lung volumes & capacities is by decreasing both lung and chest wall compliance. There is also increased in resistance to outflow of air through the airways in obesity ⁽¹⁾. The pattern of pulmonary function is found to worsen with the degree of obesity moving from a restrictive pattern in mild and moderate obesity with both FEV₁ & FVC reduced and the ratio being normal to an obstructive pattern in severe and morbid obesity with significant decrease in FEV₁ against FVC & FEV₁/FVC ratio being decreased. A prospective observational study is done on 120 subjects of age ranging from 20 to 45 years for a duration of 1 year. Males & females aged between 20 to 45 years with apparently normal general health were included in this study. The results revealed that with increasing degree of obesity, the pulmonary function pattern is moving from restrictive pattern towards obstructive pattern.