title: Abdominal obesity and metabolic syndrome.
abstract: Metabolic syndrome is associated with abdominal obesity, blood lipid disorders, inflammation, insulin resistance or full-blown diabetes, and increased risk of developing cardiovascular disease. Proposed criteria for identifying patients with metabolic syndrome have contributed greatly to preventive medicine, but the value of metabolic syndrome as a scientific concept remains controversial. The presence of metabolic syndrome alone cannot predict global cardiovascular disease risk. But abdominal obesity - the most prevalent manifestation of metabolic syndrome - is a marker of 'dysfunctional adipose tissue', and is of central importance in clinical diagnosis. Better risk assessment algorithms are needed to quantify diabetes and cardiovascular disease risk on a global scale.
authors.affiliation: Québec Heart Institute, Hôpital Laval Research Centre, 2725 chemin Sainte-Foy, Pavilion Marguerite-D'Youville, 4th Floor, Quebec City, QC G1V 4G5, Canada. jean-pierre.despres@crhl.ulaval.ca
authors.forename: Jean-Pierre
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Després
authors.forename: Isabelle
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Lemieux
mesh_terms: D000005:Abdomen / Q000473:pathology*; D050154:Adiposity; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000209:etiology / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D024821:Metabolic Syndrome / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000378:metabolism / Q000503:physiopathology*; D009765:Obesity / Q000150:complications / Q000378:metabolism / Q000503:physiopathology*; D018570:Risk Assessment