[Metabolic syndrome with a predisposition to coronary diseases and type 2 diabetes]

The concept of the metabolic syndrome, comprising central obesity, hypertension, raised triglycerides and low HDL-cholesterol, and raised fasting plasma glucose concentrations, is now well established. Clinical definitions are still matter of debate. The aetiology of the metabolic syndrome has not yet been fully established. For most patients, the root causes of the syndrome are thought to be poor nutrition, inadequate physical activity, and subsequent increases in body weight. Obesity is associated with insulin resistance and the syndrome's cluster of other metabolic disorders. Its prevalence in France in primary prevention would be between 20 to 25 %. The clinical consequences are an increased risk of cardiovascular diseases and type 2 diabetes. The medical and economic consequences of this syndrome are important and strategies for the prevention of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases have been developped lately, helped by the development of new drugs in diabetes, hypertension and obesity.