The Prevalence of Metabolic Syndrome and its Components in a Military Town in Tehran

The prevalence of metabolic syndrome (MetS) is increasing in the world and also in Iran. MetS is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular diseases and diabetes. There is no study on the prevalence of MetS in families of military personnel. The present study aimed to determine the prevalence of MetS and its components in a military town in Tehran. This cross-sectional study was conducted on 384 participants who were referred to the health center in Shahrak-e- Fajr. MetS components including waist circumference, blood pressure, fasting blood sugar, triglycerides, and high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C) were measured. MetS was diagnosed according to the Iranian National Committee of Obesity criteria. The overall prevalence of MetS was 36.45% (95% CI=31.62%-41.29%); 37.5% and 62.5%% were males and females, respectively. Only 6.25% of the participants did not have any MetS components. The most frequent components were low HDL-C levels (62.23%), and abdominal obesity (49.73%), respectively. Female gender (OR=1.35, 95% CI=0.83–2.19) and age (OR=1.17, 95% CI=1.12–1.22) were associated with increased risk of MetS. According to the results of the present study, the prevalence of MetS and its components is high in Shahrak-e- Fajr, Tehran. It needs to implement MetS prevention programs for the families of military personnel.