title: The Relationship of Metabolic Syndrome and Body Composition in Children with Premature Adrenarche: Is It Age Related?
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Studies that evaluate both body composition and metabolic syndrome (MeS) risk in prepubertal children with premature adrenarche (PA) are limited.
  
  
  METHODS
  Fifty-eight prepubertal children (aged 5-9 years, 33 female and 25 male), 30 with PA and 28 controls, were evaluated for the presence of MeS as defined by age-modified National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III criteria. A subset had dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry and bone markers (n = 23/58) to evaluate the effect of hyperandrogenism on metabolic abnormalities and body composition.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There was no difference in the prevalence of MeS between PA and controls (p = 0.138). Children with MeS were obese with an increased waist circumference (WC) and decreased high-density lipoprotein levels. Androgens were not associated with having more than one criterion for MeS (p = 0.08) but were associated with triglycerides and WC (p = 0.029 and p = 0.041, respectively). Lean mass was greater in PA subjects (p = 0.039), and androgens correlated with bone mineral density (p = 0.029) and total body fat (p = 0.008). Subjects with a higher percent of body fat were more likely to have more than one MeS risk factor (p = 0.005).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  MeS was seen only in obese subjects whether or not they had PA. Thus, it appears that obesity drives metabolic risk in the prepubertal population rather than PA. Our findings are important in determining how the prepubertal patient with PA should be evaluated for metabolic risk.
authors.affiliation: Pediatric Endocrinology, Mount Sinai Medical Center, New York, N.Y., USA.
authors.forename: Kristen M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Williams
authors.forename: Sharon E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Oberfield
authors.forename: Chengchen
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Donald J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: McMahon
authors.forename: Aviva B
authors.initials: AB
authors.lastname: Sopher
mesh_terms: D000273:Adipose Tissue / Q000378:metabolism; D050499:Adrenarche / Q000378:metabolism*; D000367:Age Factors; D001823:Body Composition / Q000502:physiology*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D002784:Cholesterol / Q000097:blood; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D024821:Metabolic Syndrome / Q000150:complications / Q000378:metabolism*; D009765:Obesity / Q000150:complications / Q000378:metabolism; D011629:Puberty, Precocious / Q000150:complications / Q000378:metabolism*; D014280:Triglycerides / Q000097:blood; D055105:Waist Circumference / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D014280:Triglycerides; D002784:Cholesterol