Metabolic syndrome could lead to a higher risk of dying from cardiovascular disease, according to a new study. Researchers in South Korea found blood pressure and diabetes to be among critical conditions leading to death.
Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is the name of a collection of risk factors that increase the chances of developing heart disease, diabetes and stroke. The conditions included in this diagnosis are obesity around the abdomen, hypertension, high fasting blood sugar, low levels of HDL (good) cholesterol and high levels of triglyceride fats in the bloodstream.
Medical records from 155,971 patients at Kangbuk Samsung Hospital in Seoul, South Korea, were examined as part of this new study. The body weight and BMI of the patients was recorded, and they were screened for blood cholesterol and sugar levels, as well as blood pressure.
The records, taken between 2002 and 2009, showed that 12.6 percent of patients exhibited the conditions of metabolic syndrome. Between the initial screenings and the median follow-up period of 3.7 years, a total of 542 of the subjects died.
"Our research found people who had metabolic syndrome had a 1.6-fold-increase in cardiovascular mortality compared to those who did not have the condition. Women who have metabolic syndrome faced a great risk of death from any cause than their counterparts who did not," said Ki-Chul Sung from the Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine in Seoul, South Korea.
However, it's important to note that this higher death rate among patients disappeared when subjects with diabetes and high blood pressure were excluded from the analysis.
The Endocrine Society reports that in the United States, around 22.9 percent of adults currently exhibit conditions of metabolic syndrome, along with 4.5 percent of adolescents aged 12-17. This condition increases total average medical costs by nearly 24 percent over those without the syndrome, from $33,010 to $40,873. Previous research has also suggested MetS could correlate with glaucoma and breast cancer.
"The primary approaches for management of the individual components of MetS range from bariatric surgery to pharmaceutical intervention to behavioral modification. These treatments target the individual risk factors of MetS or obesity/insulin resistance," The Endocrine Society reported.
Obesity, defined as a BMI of 30 or greater, is found in 33.5 percent of men and 36.1 percent of women in the U.S.
"Younger people who have metabolic syndrome should be aware of the risk, particularly those who have diabetes and high blood pressure," said Eun-Jung Rhee from the Kangbuk Samsung Hospital.
Analysis of the role played by metabolic syndrome, high blood pressure, and diabetes in deaths by cardiovascular disease was detailed in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.
Photo: Sharon Sinclair | Flickr
