Cardiometabolic risk in young adults with Down syndrome

Studies regarding cardiometabolic risk (CMR) for individuals with Down syndrome (DS) conflict. Our previous research in youth with DS, aged 10-20 years, found increased prevalence of dyslipidemia and prediabetes compared to matched peers without DS. Herein, we compare CMR in young adults with DS, aged 18-35 years, to a similar population-based sample from the 2001-2018 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). The group with DS had higher NonHDL-C (mean DS 131.9 mg/dL; NHANES 126.1 p < 0.001), lower HDL-C (DS 47.5 mg/dL; NHANES 52.2 p < 0.001), higher LDL-C (DS 109.3 mg/dL; NHANES 105.4 p < 0.001), higher triglycerides (DS 102.9 mg/dL; NHANES 86.9 p < 0.001), but lower fasting glucose (DS 85.8 mg/dL; NHANES 95.2 p < 0.0001), lower HOMA-IR (DS 2.17; NHANES 2.24 p = 0.0006), lower systolic (DS 109.7 mmHg; NHANES 114.6 p < 0.0001) and lower diastolic (DS 60.9 mmHg; NHANES 67.8 p < 0.0001) blood pressures. There was relationship of higher HDL-C, triglycerides, glucose, systolic, and diastolic blood pressure with increasing BMI in the NHANES cohort which was dampened in the group with DS. These results indicate that more information is needed to guide clinicians in screening for CMR in individuals with DS.