Association between metabolic syndrome and acne in teenage girls: a cross-sectional study

Acne is a common chronic inflammatory skin disease predominantly occurring during adolescence; this condition adversely affects a person’s self-esteem and can be associated with metabolic disorders. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of metabolic syndrome and its components in adolescent girls with acne compared to a control group. 

In this cross-sectional study,105 adolescent girls aged 12-18 years were assigned to either the acne (case; n=55) or control group (n=50). The case group was selected from the Dermatology Department of a general hospital in Tehran, Iran, between January and August 2017. Acne lesions were confirmed and graded by a dermatologist. Clinical and biochemical parameters were evaluated for all participants.

The prevalence of metabolic syndrome in patients with and without acne was 18.2% and 14%, respectively. As a result, metabolic syndrome was not correlated with acne in adolescent girls (P=0.561). In addition, the mean body mass index (P=0.89), waist circumference (P=0.62), mean systolic and diastolic blood pressures (P=0.57 and 0.62, respectively), fasting blood sugar (P=0.59), total cholesterol, and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels were comparable between the studied groups (P>0.05). Moreover, triglyceride levels were significantly lower in the acne group (P=0.028), whereas this group featured a higher level of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (P=0.02). However, the logistic regression results showed that none of the measured lipids were associated with acne.

The findings indicated that metabolic syndrome and its components (representing metabolic imbalance) were not correlated with acne in adolescent girls.