Prevalence of metabolic syndrome in a rural area of Brazil

Abstract

CONTEXT AND OBJECTIVE: Metabolic syndrome (MS) is recognized worldwide as an important public health concern. However, little information is available for rural populations in Brazil. The aim was to determine the prevalence and risk factors associated with MS in a rural village in Brazil in 2004. DESIGN AND SETTING:Cross-sectional population-based study, in Virgem das Graças, a rural community in the Jequitinhonha Valley, State of Minas Gerais.METHODS: MS was the dependent variable, defined as any three of these risk factors: arterial hypertension, high glucose or triglyceride concentrations, low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and abdominal obesity. MS prevalence, according to selected socioeconomic and demographic variables (age, skin color, marital status, schooling and smoking habits), was determined in 251 subjects aged 20-88 years. Multivariate logistic regression was used to estimate odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals.RESULTS: MS prevalence was 21.6% (7.7% for men and 33.6% for women); the age-adjusted prevalence was 19.0%. The highest prevalences were observed for women > 60 years of age (52.9%) and women with body mass index (BMI) ≥ 25 kg/m 2 (64%). Age, sex and BMI were associated risk factors for MS, while skin color was only significantly associated with MS for women. The models were adjusted for age, smoking habits, marital status, skin color and schooling.CONCLUSIONS: BMI and age were independently associated factors for MS in this rural community. These findings provide important evidence on the prevalence of MS as a public health problem, particularly for women and overweight individuals.

The prevalence of metabolic syndrome in Latin America: a systematic review

“…In one of these, the prevalence was higher in women than in men, with a difference of 1?6 % (33) . In the other five studies (24,26,27,30,32) , the prevalence was higher in men than in women, with differences between 0?4 % (27) and 16?7 % (24) .…”

“…In one of them, the prevalence was higher for women (47?9 %) than for men (31?4 %) (30) . In the remaining studies (24,26,27,30,32,33) , the prevalence was higher for men than for women, with the reported differences ranging from 3?8 % (27) to 18?0 % (26) . Only three studies reported the prevalence of HT by age (27,29,32) , observing an increase in parallel.…”

“…Nine articles reported the prevalence of MS by gender (24,25,(27)(28)(29)(30)(31)33,34) : weighted mean was 25?3 % for women and 23?2 % for men; differences were not statistically significant. In three studies (27,28,34) (two of which had higher participation by women (27,34) , whereas one had higher participation by men (28) ), MS was slightly more frequent among women compared with men, with a difference in prevalence between men and women varying between 0?8 % (34) and 8?89 % (27) .…”

“…The same seven studies mentioned the general prevalence of dyslipidaemia (24)(25)(26)(27)29,30,33) ; the weighted mean of hypertriacylglycerolaemia was 46?7 %, and for low levels of HDL cholesterol the weighted mean was 62?9 %.…”

Prevalence and determinants of the metabolic syndrome among Tunisian adults: results of the Transition and Health Impact in North Africa (TAHINA) project

“…The MetS prevalence estimated in the current study is similar to that reported in a previous study carried out in a population of Greater Tunis, located in the north of Tunisia (10) . Several studies have reported an increased rate of MetS in women compared with men (8,10,21,22) . In the present study the higher MetS prevalence in women could be explained by the fact that central obesity was three times more frequent in women than in men (65?5 % v. 20?6 %, respectively).…”