Metabolic syndrome and its contribution to coronary artery disease in non-diabetic subjects

Abstract

Background and purpose: People with the metabolic syndrome are at increased risk for developing diabetes mellitus and coronary artery disease (CAD). This study assessed the 5 risk factors of metabolic syndrome in non-diabetic individuals with angiographically-documented CAD.

Methods: To estimate the CAD risk associated with metabolic syndrome, we examined the 5 components of metabolic syndrome, defined by the National Cholesterol Education Program-Adult Treatment Panel (NCEP-ATP) III, including blood pressure (> or = 130/85 mm Hg), fasting glucose (> or = 110 mg/dL), fasting triglycerides (> or = 150 mg/dL), high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol level (men < 40 mg/dL; women < 50 mg/dL), and abdominal obesity (waist circumference defined by the Department of Health, Taiwan: men > 90 cm; women > 80 cm) among 139 non-diabetic patients with angiographically-documented CAD and 139 age- and gender-matched non-diabetic control subjects.

Results: Metabolic syndrome was found to be more prevalent in subjects with CAD than subjects without CAD (51.8% vs 18.7%; p < 0.001). Multiple logistic regression analysis showed that hypertension was the strongest predictor of CAD, followed by higher fasting glucose and lowered HDL cholesterol. These 5 factors accounted for 41.3% of total risk for CAD without diabetes.

Conclusions: Our data revealed that the prevalence of metabolic syndrome was higher in this group of patients with angiographically-diagnosed CAD without diabetes than in controls.