Metabolic Syndrome
Jahangir Moini, Matthew Adams, Anthony LoGalbo in Complications of Diabetes Mellitus, 2022
Metabolic syndrome is actually a group of risk factors that increases risks for diabetes mellitus, heart disease, stroke, and other health problems. There must be at least three of the following metabolic risk factors in order for metabolic syndrome to be diagnosed: A larger than normal waist circumference, high triglyceride level, low HDL cholesterol level, hypertension, and high fasting blood sugar. The risk of having metabolic syndrome is closely linked to obesity and lack of physical activity, as well as insulin resistance. Metabolic syndrome is becoming more common because of increased obesity rates. Conditions that play a role in the development of metabolic syndrome include fatty liver disease, polycystic ovarian syndrome, and respiratory conditions such as obstructive sleep apnea. Metabolic syndrome is treated with a combination of lifestyle improvements and medications.
Promoting the health of the medical profession: environmentalism and commercialism in medical education
Norman J. Temple, Andrew Thompson in Excessive Medical Spending, 2018
The escalating prevalence of obesity in adults and children has been called an epidemic.6 The metabolic syndrome incorporates dyslipidemia, elevated blood pressure, impaired glucose tolerance, and obesity. This group of symptoms is poised to overtake cigarette smoking as the leading cause of heart disease in the USA.7 The primary treatment in battling the metabolic syndrome is weight loss, but people can benefit simply from increased physical activity or decreased caloric intake even in the absence of weight loss. Some benefit in cases of metabolic syndrome would also be generated by increasing fruit and vegetable intake, along with increasing the consumption of whole grains and low-fat dairy foods; however, certain aspects of the culture in the USA, notably portion size,8,9 food preference,6,10,11 and the sedentary nature of both work and leisure7,11,12 undermine these treatment options and represent a general hindrance to the practice of prevention and nutrition. When physicians make attempts at incorporating these concepts into practice, patient compliance is often difficult to achieve, and the fact that physicians have less and less time to devote to individual patients for encouraging lifestyle changes makes it more difficult still.
Muscle pain
Anne Stephenson, Martin Mueller, John Grabinar, Janice Rymer in 100 Cases in General Practice, 2017
The doctor stops the simvastatin. Over the next few weeks, the muscle pain and weakness reduce significantly and 6 months later, the symptoms have completely resolved. The patient is offered talking therapies and bereavement counselling. However, he prefers antidepressant medication that had helped in the previous episode, understanding that treatment would need to be continued for at least 6 months. The medication initially caused nausea, but he persevered and his mood started to improve after 2 weeks. Eight months later, he is reducing the medication successfully. The treatment for metabolic syndrome has two parts: modifying lifestyle and medication to treat lipids, highblood glucose and blood pressure. This patient's next HbA1c was above the threshold for diagnosing diabetes. Feeling physically and mentally better, the new diagnosis motivated him to tackle his lifestyle issues with diet and exercise. Repeated blood tests showed reducing cholesterol levels, precluding the need for further treatment.
Emergency Medical Services Clinicians Have a High Prevalence of Metabolic Syndrome
Published in Prehospital Emergency Care, 2023
Michael W. Supples, Nancy K. Glober, Thomas A. Lardaro, Simon A. Mahler, Jason P. Stopyra
Several modifiable behaviors associated with metabolic syndrome may be targets for intervention, including smoking, BMI, diet, and physical activity (47). Using survey methodology, Cash et al.(4) estimated approximately half of nationally registered EMS clinicians had suboptimal behaviors for cardiovascular health. Effective strategies to reduce the prevalence of metabolic syndrome in EMS clinicians may target poor dietary habits and lack of engagement with regular physical activity. Lifestyle interventions including dietary modifications and increased physical activity effectively reduce the effects of metabolic syndrome in the general population (48). Unfortunately, EMS clinicians face numerous barriers to health habits, including lack of time, energy, resources, and social support (44). A majority of EMS clinicians work overtime or at multiple jobs (49), suggesting meaningful interventions will need to be time- and cost-efficient, and likely embedded in the existing clinician culture and infrastructure. Improving the socioeconomic factors experienced by EMS clinicians, such as improved wages and safer work schedules, could be a means to improving EMS clinician health. Effective interventions to improve diet and physical activity engagement for EMS clinicians have not yet been described in the literature.
Tailored physical activity on prescription with follow-ups improved motivation and physical activity levels. A qualitative study of a 5-year Swedish primary care intervention
Published in Scandinavian Journal of Primary Health Care, 2020
Monica Joelsson, Stefan Lundqvist, Maria E. H. Larsson
Globally, one-third of all adults are physically inactive [1]. Existing public health guidelines for physical activity recommend a minimum level of 150 min of moderate-intensity or 75 min of high-intensity physical activity per week [2,3]. A 2016 study in Sweden showed that 70% of the population aged 50–64 years did not adhere to the recommended minimum level of physical activity [4,5]. The least physically active individuals have the most to gain from increasing physical activity level and adopting a regular routine [6,7] and remaining physically active from young age or increasing the level of physical activity in middle age may also reduce the risk of future heart failure in healthy women [8]. Being inactive is one of the leading risk factors for lifestyle-related diseases and premature death carrying a 20–30% increased risk for cancer, heart disease, stroke and diabetes, with reduced life expectancy of 3–5 years. Physical inactivity is also associated with increased societal costs through medical care and lost productivity [9]. Metabolic syndrome is associated with physical inactivity, and increased risk for type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease [10]. The syndrome is not consistently defined, but includes abdominal obesity, insulin resistance, dyslipidaemia and hypertension in various combinations [11]. Physical activity positively affects all components of the metabolic syndrome [12].
Midlife women’s health consequences associated with polycystic ovary syndrome
Published in Climacteric, 2020
A. T. Ali, F. Guidozzi
More than 50% of women with PCOS over the age of 40 years are at risk of developing metabolic syndrome4. Although some studies have reported that metabolic syndrome is more prevalent in overweight and obese women with PCOS compared with controls4,5,21,22, however this might be due to the effect of abdominal obesity21. A previous large study involving 1223 patients with PCOS reported that the prevalence of metabolic syndrome was higher in women with PCOS (15.8%) than in controls (10.1%)21. However, no significant differences have been detected after controlling for BMI. The interaction between metabolic syndrome and PCOS regarding the development of CVD is described in Table 1.
Related Knowledge Centers
- Hyperglycemia
- Hypertriglyceridemia
- Syndrome
- Type 2 Diabetes
- Cardiovascular Disease
- Hypertension
- Insulin Resistance
- Abdominal Obesity
- High-Density Lipoprotein
- Prediabetes