engleski

The metabolic syndrome in a continental rural part of Croatia

Our aim was to investigate the prevalence of components of the metabolic syndrome in a village population of the continental part of Croatia. A sample of 845 inhabitants from 5 continental villages was enrolled (on a door-to-door basis, participation rate was 76.7%). MS was defined as the presence of at least 3 of 5 risk factors [dyslipidemia, hypertension, impaired fasting/diabetes, abdominal obesity] based on ATP III criteria. The prevalence of hypertension, dyslipidemia, IGT and their combinations as dependent variables of MS was analyzed using the χ2-test. Age, gender, smoking habits were analyzed as independent variables in multivariate logistic regression. The prevalence of dyslipidemia, hypertension, IGT in our group was 14% (122/845 subjects). The most common combination of variables of MS was that of elevated fasting blood glucose, triglycerides and blood pressure (6.7% ; 57/845), followed by the combination of increased body mass index (BMI), triglycerides and blood pressure (6.6%, 42/639). Elevated fasting blood glucose, BMI, and triglycertriglyceride were present in 4.4% (28/639) of subjects. Regarding gender, no statistically significant differences were found between the groups with vs. without MS (χ2-test: 0.51 ; p = 0.476). There were fewer smokers in the MS group than in the non-MS one (29% vs. 39% ; χ2 = 4.1 ; p = 0.043). Age was significantly associated with MS (OR 1.6), i.e., the proportion of MS subjects increases with aging (< 30, 30–49, 50–69, ≥70) (χ2 = 28.1 ; p < 0.001). The metabolic syndrome, a global epidemic of modern world, is also present in the rural population of continental Croatia increasing the risk for diabetes and global cardio-renal risk in a substantial number of farmers. Lifestyle measures and education of the population are of utmost importance, followed by using a proper combination of drugs. A multidisciplinary approach is necessary to prevent the development of MS, and to identify and treat MS patients.

metabolic syndrome; hypertension; diabetes

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