title: Prevalence of metabolic syndrome and its association with erectile dysfunction among urologic patients: metabolic backgrounds of erectile dysfunction.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To identify the prevalence of metabolic syndrome (MS) and its association with erectile dysfunction (ED) among urologic patients.
  
  
  METHODS
  The study population consisted of 393 male patients aged 40 to 70 years, who were admitted to the urology clinics of four different institutions from February to March 2005. The waist circumference (WC) and triglyceride (TG) and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol levels were measured. Patients were divided into two groups: group 1 consisted of patients with a WC greater than 102 cm, and group 2 consisted of patients with a WC of less than 102 cm. The erectile status of the two groups was compared.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Of the 393 patients, 157 (39.9%) had MS. Of the 393 patients, 124 with MS (79%) and 146 without MS (61.9%) had ED. The presence of MS was significantly associated with ED (P <0.001). In the presence of an increased WC with normal serum HDL and TG levels, the relative risk of ED was 1.94. If the patient with an increased WC had a pathologic level of HDL or TG, the relative risk of ED increased up to 2.97-fold. The relative risk of ED in the presence of an increased WC, together with pathologic levels of HDL and TG, was 3.38.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In our study, MS was strongly associated with ED. Fasting blood glucose levels, hypertension, and WC are the most significant risk factors predicting the risk of ED. A more pronounced increase in ED risk in the presence of abdominal obesity, together with altered TG and HDL cholesterol levels, may indicate a special metabolic background of ED regarding lipid metabolism.
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, Atatürk Research and Education Hospital, Izmir, Turkey. kaan_bal@hotmail.com
authors.forename: Kaan
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Bal
authors.forename: Mehmet
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Oder
authors.forename: Ali S
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Sahin
authors.forename: Cüneyt T
authors.initials: CT
authors.lastname: Karataş
authors.forename: Omer
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Demir
authors.forename: Ertan
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Can
authors.forename: Bilali H
authors.initials: BH
authors.lastname: Gümüş
authors.forename: Kutan
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ozer
authors.forename: Oğuz
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Sahin
authors.forename: A Adil
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Esen
mesh_terms: D017677:Age Distribution; D000368:Aged; D015992:Body Mass Index; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D015331:Cohort Studies; D015897:Comorbidity; D007172:Erectile Dysfunction / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D024821:Metabolic Syndrome / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D015995:Prevalence; D011336:Probability; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D014570:Urologic Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*