Prevalence of metabolic syndrome according to ATPIII and IDF criteria in the Iranian population

Metabolic syndrome is a collection of metabolic disorders that increase the risk of cardiovascular diseases (CVD) and diabetes. Metabolic syndrome is characterized by abdominal obesity, hypertriglyceridemia, low HDL level, hyperglycemia and HTN. With regard to the development of CVD disease in recent years, the present study was completed to determine the degree of metabolic syndrome prevalence in the adult population of Semnan province.

This epidemiological cross-sectional study was carried out in the province of Semnan (Iran) on 3799 individuals between 30 and 70 years of age. In the study, multi-stage individuals were randomly selected from urban and rural environments and the prevalence of metabolic syndrome was determined according to ATPIII and IDF criteria.

The prevalence of metabolic syndrome according to ATPIII and IDF was 28.5% and 35.8% respectively, and increased with age in both sexes. The highest degree of prevalence was seen in the above-60-years age group. The Prevalence of metabolic syndrome was significantly higher in women on basis of both definitions; it was higher among non-smokers on basis of the IDF definition (P<0.05). Decrease in the prevalence of the syndrome had significant relation to literacy. There was no significant difference of metabolic syndrome prevalence between urban and rural settings. Among the risk factors of metabolic syndrome according to ATPIII and IDF, high triglycerides (40.8%) and abdominal obesity (70.8%) had the highest prevalence respectively.

The findings show the high prevalence of metabolic syndrome in the 30 to 70 year-old population. Therefore, the identification of the risk factors should be attempted to prevent syndrome acquisition.