Prevalence and Correlates of Metabolic Syndrome in Young Population: A Cross Sectional Study

Background: The Metabolic Syndrome (MS) is emerging as one of the major public health problem all over the world including India. It confers increased risk of Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) and Diabetes Mellitus (DM), both of which pose a huge burden over the society and economics. This study was conducted to assess the prevalence and correlates of MS in young population. Settings and design: A cross-sectional study was performed in Department of Medicine of a rural teaching tertiary care hospital in central India. Materials and methods: In all consecutive study subjects, a National Cholesterol Education Programme Adult Treatment Panel (NCEP ATP -III) criteria was applied to assess the magnitude of MS. Statistical analysis: Prevalence of MS was expressed in percentage. For determining the association of risk factors with MS, we used Student's t-test to test for continuous variables Chi square for categorical variables and Fisher exact test in the case of small cell sizes (expected value<5). Association was considered statistical significant when P value was <= .05. Results: The magnitude of MS was 11.2%. Conclusion: Metabolic syndrome exists in significant number of young student population. The early identification of MS and associated risk factors can help to prevent or delay MS, diabetes and CVD by modifying their lifestyle.