Neck Circumference is Associated with Metabolic Syndrome Components in Chinese Subjects with Type 2 Diabetes

We aimed to investigate the correlation between neck circumference (NC) and metabolic syndrome (MetS) components in type 2 diabetes (T2DM) patients.

This cross-section study included 610 patients with T2DM, including 312 males and 298 females. Height, weight, body mass index (BMI), NC, waist circumference (WC), hip circumference, and blood pressure were measured. Serum glucose, lipid, and uric acid levels were examined. The correlation between NC and anthropometric parameters and metabolic disorders was analyzed. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis was performed to determine the best NC cutoff value for predicting MetS.

Either in male or female subjects, NC was positively correlated with BMI, WC, waist-to-hip ratio, systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, and serum triglyceride and uric acid levels and negatively correlated with serum HDL-C levels. NC is an independent influencing factor of female serum uric acid levels (standardized coefficient β = 0.141, t = 2.088, P = 0.038). NC of the MetS group was significantly larger than that of the non-MetS group (male 38.42±3.05 cm vs 36.20±2.90 cm, female 36.14±2.75 cm vs 34.01±2.94 cm, P < 0.001). The NC cutoff value for predicting MetS is 37.3 cm for males and 35.8cm for females. There was no difference between using cutoff points of NC and WC to recognize all MetS components in males and hyperuricemia in females (P>0.05).

NC is closely related to BMI, WC, and MetS components in T2DM. The cutoff points of NC can identify all MetS components in males and hyperuricemia in females with the same efficiency as WC.