Identifying metabolic syndrome without blood tests in young adults: The Terneuzen Birth Cohort
article
Background: Within the context of the obesity epidemic identifying young adults at risk for type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease is important. A practical approach is based on the identification of metabolic syndrome (MetS). Our objective was to develop a simple and efficient stepwise strategy to identify MetS in young adults. Methods: Subjects were part of a birth cohort (n = 2599) in Terneuzen, The Netherlands, born in 1977-86. In 2004-05: 642 of these young adults participated in a physical examination and blood tests. Tree regression was used to determine the optimal decision strategy to identify MetS. Results: Overall prevalence of MetS, defined according to the NCEP ATPIII, was 7.5%. The tree regression yielded an optimal stepwise strategy that eliminated the need for blood tests for the diagnosis of MetS in 50-90% of the cases, depending on the accepted level of error. A large group (52% of the total) with BMI <35 had a normal waist circumference (WC) and normal blood pressure (BP). None of them had MetS. Subjects with BMI ≥35 all had MetS. If BMI <30, 38% had an increased WC or increased BP with a risk of MetS of only 6%. So for them the omission of blood tests could also be considered. Conclusion: In most young adults MetS can be identified or excluded without blood tests by a simple and stepwise strategy, based on the measurement of BMI, WC and BP. This makes it possible to develop simple prevention strategies for young adults at risk for type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. © The Author 2008. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Public Health Association. All rights reserved. Chemicals/CAS: Lipids
Topics
Metabolic syndromeTree regressionBlood examinationBlood pressure measurementBody massCardiovascular diseaseVohort analysisMajor clinical studyNon insulin dependent diabetes mellitusPatient identificationPhysical examinationPrevalenceRisk assessmentStatistical analysisTechniqueTree regressionWaist circumferenceAdolescentAdultAge FactorsBlood PressureBody Mass IndexCohort StudiesDiagnosis, DifferentialFemaleHealth BehaviorHumansLipidsMaleMetabolic Syndrome XNetherlandsPhysical ExaminationPrevalenceWaist CircumferenceYoung Adult
TNO Identifier
280012
ISSN
11011262
Source
European Journal of Public Health, 18(6), pp. 656-660.
Pages
656-660
Files
To receive the publication files, please send an e-mail request to TNO Repository.