The GILHT-E Syndrome?
- From the Department of Medicine, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital Center, New York, New York
- Address correspondence to Gerald B. Phillips, MD, St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital Center, 1000 Tenth Ave., New York, NY 10019. E-mail: gbp1{at}columbia.edu
The announcement of the new section in Diabetes Care (Metabolic Syndrome/Insulin Resistance Syndrome/Pre-Diabetes) by Davidson (1) and the response by Vinicor and Bowman (2) point out that there is no consensus on the name, components, or treatment of the constellation of risk factors that is associated with cardiovascular disease. I would like to suggest that the constellation may be important primarily as an etiological concept—that the constellation implies the existence of a common underlying factor linking its components. Further, the presence of a common underlying factor, which could lead directly to myocardial infarction (MI), increases the possibility that any one or more of the components of the constellation could be incidental to the development of MI (3). An underlying factor, if identified, could define the components of the constellation and provide a focus for …
