Metabolic syndrome: definition, history, criterion

Abstract

The metabolic syndrome is a set of risk factors for diabetes mellitus type 2 and cardiovascular disease, characterized by the presence of resistance to the insulin and compensating hiperinsulinemia associate to alterations of the metabolism of carbohydrates and lipids, elevated arterial blood pressure, and obesity. A revision in Medline was made, and gave as a result 6366 entrances for «metabolic syndrome». In the beginnings of the XX century, associations of risk factors were described. In 1988, Reaven observed that several risk factors (dislipidemia, hypertension, hyperglicemia) tended to be together. This set was named syndrome X. The name metabolic syndrome like diagnostic entity with defined criteria was introduced by the WHO in 1998. The prevalence of the metabolic syndrome varies according to some factors such as gender, age, ethnic group, but it is located between 15% to a 40%, being greater in the population of Hispanic origin. Several criteria for the metabolic syndrome diagnosis exist. The most known it is of ATP III, in this case, three factors must be present: high abdominal perimeter (>102 cm in men and >88 cm in women), TG >150 mg/dl, HDL under (men >40 mg/dl y women HDL >0 mg/dl), TA >130/85 mm Hg, glycemia >110 mg/dl including diabetes mellitus.Other factors also considered are: thrombogenesis, inflammation, uric acid, stress, cigarette, sedentariness, age, ethnic origin, acantosis nigricans, polycystic ovary syndrome, microalbuminuria, primary hypothyroidism, use of protease inhibitors for patients with HIV, endogenous or exogenous excess of glucocorticoids.