Study of the Relationship Between the Number of Metabolic Syndrome Components and Subclinical Cardiac Dysfunction: A...

Background: Metabolic syndrome (MetS) comprises coexisting risk factors enhancing the likelihood of developing cardiovascular disease (CVD). The aim of this study was to investigate the correlation between the number of MetS components and subclinical cardiac dysfunction, assessed via transthoracic echocardiography (TTE), in individuals without overt CVD. Methods: A retrospective analysis was performed using data from 100 patients (63% female; mean age 58.8 ± 16.81 years) hospitalized in the Department of Internal Medicine, Angiology and Physical Medicine at the Medical University of Silesia in Katowice, Poland, between June 2022 and February 2024. The inclusion criteria were the absence of diagnosed atherosclerotic CVD and no evidence of acute illness or exacerbation of chronic diseases. Each participant was evaluated for MetS components and underwent TTE. Results: Univariate analysis revealed significant correlations between the number of MetS components and selected TTE parameters, including left ventricular mass (LVM) (R = 0.406; p < 0.001), left ventricular mass index (LVMI) (R = 0.248; p = 0.013), left ventricular ejection fraction (LV EF) (R = -0.261; p = 0.009), left atrial volume (LAV) (R = 0.312; p < 0.001), and left atrial volume index (LAVI) (R = 0.273; p = 0.007). These correlations did not remain significant after adjusting for age, sex, and body mass index (BMI). Among patients not meeting the full diagnostic criteria for MetS, LAV and LAVI values remained significantly correlated with the number of MetS components, independent of confounding variables. Conclusions: The selected echocardiographic parameters were significantly correlated with the number of MetS components; however, most associations were explained by age, sex, and BMI.