What is concentric hypertrophy?

• A. Chamber sizes stay the same, but left ventricular walls thicken in response to high resistance.
• B. Chamber size increases with wall thinning.
• C. No change in heart structure.
• D. A decrease in heart muscle mass.

Answer: (A)

Concentric hypertrophy is the heart’s adaptation to increased afterload (pressure overload). The muscle adds sarcomeres in parallel, which thickens the ventricular walls without enlarging the chamber; in fact, the cavity can become relatively smaller. This thickening helps generate higher pressure against resistance (like in hypertension or aortic stenosis) but makes the ventricle stiffer, often leading to diastolic dysfunction even if systolic function stays preserved. This differs from eccentric hypertrophy, where the chamber dilates due to volume overload. So the description that chamber size stays the same while the left ventricular walls thicken in response to high resistance fits concentric hypertrophy.