The impact of metabolic syndrome on carotid intima media thickness.
OBJECTIVE
Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a cluster of metabolic abnormalities involving several cardiovascular risk factors. Carotid intima media thickness (CIMT) is an important early screening tool to assess subclinical manifestation of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases. We aimed to investigate the impact of MetS on CIMT in a large scaled community based study.


METHODS
The study was conducted on 2102 participants. Carotid intima media thickness was measured in all of the participants. The study sample was divided into 4 groups; Group 1 subjects with a body mass index (BMI) < 25.0 kg/m2 [n = 499 (MetS- = 488, MetS+ = 11)], Group 2 BMI between 25.0 and 29.9 kg/m2 [n = 693 (MetS- = 559, MetS+ = 134)], Group 3 BMI between ≥ 30 kg/m2 and 39.9 kg/m2 [n = 822 (MetS- = 375, MetS+ = 477)], and Group 4 BMI ≥ 40 kg/m2 [n = 88 (MetS- = 27, MetS+ = 61)].


RESULTS
Carotid intima media thickness was higher in the individuals with MetS compared to their normal counterparts. Furthermore, the subgroup analysis showed that CIMT values in Group 1 (0.55±0.18 vs 0.82±0.70; p < 0.001), Group 2 (0.59±0.20 vs 0.68±0.18; p < 0.001) and Group 3 (0.61±0.15 vs 0.65±0.18; p < 0.001) were significantly higher in subjects with MetS compared to their normal counterparts, whereas the values were similar in Group 4 (0.62±0.13 vs 0.65±0.17; p = 0.363).


CONCLUSIONS
Carotid intima media thickness of overweight, obese and normal weight individuals without MetS were lower than their counterparts with MetS. MetS had no impact on CIMT in morbid obese individuals possibly due to established insulin resistance earlier than MetS.
Department of Cardiology, Medicine Faculty of Dicle University, Diyarbakir, Turkey. drserkanbulur@yahoo.com.
M
M
Aydin
S
S
Bulur
R
R
Alemdar
S
S
Yalçin
Y
Y
Türker
C
C
Basar
Y
Y
Aslantas
Ö
Ö
Yazgan
S
S
Albayrak
H
H
Özhan
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D015992:Body Mass Index; D002339:Carotid Arteries / Q000473:pathology*; D059168:Carotid Intima-Media Thickness; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007333:Insulin Resistance; D008297:Male; D024821:Metabolic Syndrome / Q000150:complications* / Q000503:physiopathology; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity / Q000150:complications*; D009767:Obesity, Morbid / Q000150:complications; D050177:Overweight / Q000150:complications; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D055815:Young Adult