Population Comparison of Two Clinical Approaches to the Metabolic Syndrome
Implications of the new International Diabetes Federation consensus definition
- Robert J. Adams, MD1,
- Sarah Appleton, BSC1,
- David H. Wilson, PHD1,
- Anne W. Taylor, MPH2,
- Eleonora Dal Grande2,
- Catherine Chittleborough, MPH2,
- Tiffany Gill, BAPPSC2 and
- Richard Ruffin, MD1
- 1The Health Observatory, University of Adelaide, Queen Elizabeth Hospital Campus, Woodville, South Australia
- 2Population Research and Outcome Studies Unit, South Australian Department of Health, Adelaide, South Australia
- Address correspondence and reprint requests to Dr. Robert J. Adams, University of Adelaide, Department of Medicine, Queen Elizabeth Hospital Campus, Woodville Rd., Woodville South, Australia SA5011. E-mail: robert.adams{at}nwahs.sa.gov.au
- ATP III, Third Report of the U.S. National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel
- IDF, International Diabetes Federation
In 2005, the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) released a consensus clinical definition of the metabolic syndrome for worldwide use that included central obesity as a prerequisite (1). The IDF definition varied from the earlier Third Report of the U.S. National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel (ATP III) panel definition with broader criteria for waist circumference, HDL, and fasting plasma glucose (2). The impact of these changes to the prevalence of the metabolic syndrome, in particular the use of differing values for defining central obesity, has not been studied. Our aim was to compare these two definitions for the distribution and prevalence of the metabolic syndrome in a representative biomedical population study of predominantly European adults from Adelaide, South Australia (population 1.2 million) (3).
RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS
Individuals aged ≥18 years from households selected at random from the electronic white pages directory were eligible. Of the eligible sample of 8,213, a total of 5,850 (71%) completed the initial interview. Of these, 4,060 (69%) attended the clinic for the biomedical examination (3). Respondents completed surveys and underwent clinic assessment, including measurement of blood pressure height, weight, waist, and fasting glucose and lipid levels (3). The study was approved by the institutional ethics committees of the North West Adelaide Health Service, …
