Metabolic syndrome: a clinic based rural study--are women at high risk?

Reports of urban based studies suggest an increase in the prevalence of MS worldwide along with diabetes, hypertension and atherogenic dyslipidemia. The supporting rural based studies on MS are few and prevalence of MS among women is underestimated. In this prospective study we have evaluated the clinic prevalence of metabolic syndrome among rural Indian population with special emphasis on prevalence in women.

2329 patients attending to diabetic centre were evaluated for the markers of MS. Anthropometric measurements, clinical assessment, capillary blood glucose and lipid profile (TC, HDL-C, TG, LDL-C, VLDL-C) were done and classified as per NCEP ATP III and NCEP ATP III modified for Asian guidelines. We compared the prevalence of MS between males and females for statistical significance by SPSS 16.0 statistical software. The level of significance was kept at <0.05.

The Clinic prevalence of metabolic syndrome was 61.74% with 57.59% males and 69.66% females as per NCEP ATP III guidelines. 73.85% of the study population had MS, with 68.85% males and 83.39% females had MS as per modified Asian criteria. We could get a statistically significant variation between males and females in FBS, PPBS, SBP, DBP, TC, HDL-C, TG, LDL-C, VLDL-C, TC/HDL, LDL/HDL, BMI, W/H ratio and W/S ratio.

Prevalence MS is increasing at an epidemic proportion bringing with it micro and macro vascular complications. Women are more prone to develop MS in rural population than the men and there is a statistically significant variation in the biochemical and anthropometric parameters. This is an era of 'gender equality'; here we see women over taking men in metabolic syndrome and its complications.