R. Vasilescu 1
1 Clinical Hospital Colentina
Abstract
The metabolic syndrome is defined as an association of risk factors of metabolic origin, combined with a heightened risk for cardiovascular diseases and for type 2 diabetes mellitus. The pathogenesis of the metabolic syndrome is multifactorial, the main risk factors being: obesity (abdominal obesity in particular) and insulin resistance. The prevalence of the metabolic syndrome is increasing in all countries, regardless of their developmental status. In non-diabetic patients, the prevalence of metabolic syndrome ranges between 15% to 30% and in subjects with type 2 diabetes mellitus, the prevalence is of 70%-90%. Prestigious medical associations have devised, over time, several models of diagnostic criteria, which differ both through the attention directed to the main risk factors and through the cut-off limits for the components. The existence of several definitions of the metabolic syndrome makes it difficult to compare the results of the large number of studies which have evaluated the presence of the metabolic syndrome and its association with the cardiovascular risk. Currently, there is an intense debate on the clinical utility of the metabolic syndrome diagnosis.