The impact of serum uric acid on the diagnostic of metabolic syndrome in apparently healthy Brazilian middle-aged men

Background: Hyperuricemia is related to Metabolic Syndrome (MetS) and cardiovascular diseases, but the use of serum uric acid (UA) to diagnose MetS is currently ignored in clinical practices. Objectives: To examine the impact of serum UA on the diagnostic of MetS and the relationship of serum UA with cardiometabolic risk factors in apparently healthy Brazilian middle-aged men residents in a city of Minas Gerais. Methods: In a cross-sectional analysis, 289 apparently healthy middle-aged men underwent anthropometric, clinical, sociodemographic and blood serum biochemical evaluation. By using receive operating curve the internal cutoff of serum UA was determined (5.25 mg/dL). Results: Subjects with two or more components of MetS exhibited higher serum UA as compared to those with one or none component. The inclusion of serum UA ≥ 5.25mg/dL as an additional component of MetS increased the occurrence of this syndrome by 13%. Subjects with UA ≥ 5.25mg/dL showed high prevalence for MetS and association with its components (central obesity, hypertriglyceridemia, dyslipidemia and hypertension) as well as atherogenic risk. Conclusions: Serum UA has an important impact on the diagnostic of MetS and is related to cardiometabolic risk factors in apparently healthy Brazilian middle-aged men. Its use in clinical practices could aggregate accuracy to diagnose MetS.

A home-based treadmill training reduced epicardial and abdominal fat in postmenopausal women with metabolic syndrome

Introduction: The current study was designed to determine the effect of home-based treadmill training on epicardial and abdominal adipose tissue in postmenopausal women with metabolic syndrome (MS). A secondary objective was to identify significant correlations between imaging and conventional anthropometric parameters. Material and methods: Sixty postmenopausal women with MS volunteered for the current trial. Thirty were randomly assigned to perform a supervised home-based 16-week treadmill training program, 3 sessions/week, consisting of a warm-up, 30-40 min treadmill exercise (increasing 5-minutes each 4-weeks) at a work intensity of 60-75% of peak heart rate (increasing 5% each 4-weeks) and cooling-down. Epicardial fat thickness (EFT) was assessed by echocardiography. Abdominal fat mass in the lumbar regions L1-L4 and L4-L5 was determined by dual X-ray absorptiometry. Results: Epicardial fat thickness and abdominal fat percentages were significantly improved after the completion of the training program. Another striking feature of the current study was the moderate correlation that was found between EFT and waist circumference (WC). Conclusion: Home-based treadmill training reduced epicardial and abdominal fat in postmenopausal women with MS. A secondary finding was that a moderate correlation was found between EFT and WC. While current investigations are promising, future studies are still required to consolidate this approach in clinical application.

25-hydroxy vitamin D and syndrome metabolic components in candidates to bariatric surgery

Aim: The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of hypovitaminosis D in candidates to bariatric surgery (BS) and its relationship with risk factors and components of the metabolic syndrome. Material and methods: Clinical, anthropometric and biochemical parameters were measured in 56 Caucasian patients included in a protocol of BS between January and June 2014. Patients were stratified into three groups according to their vitamin D status: sufficiency (≥ 40 ng/ml), insufficiency (40-20 ng/ml) and deficiency (< 20 ng/ml). Results: Data showed vitamin D deficiency in 75% of patients. These patients had greater BMI (p = 0.006) and lower PTH concentrations in plasma (p = 0.045). In addition, there were more patients with diabetes mellitus type 2 (DM2) and dyslipidemia (DLPM) in the group with 25 (OH) D < 20 ng/ml levels. Another finding was that 25(OH) D levels were observed to be negatively correlated with fat mass (r = -0.504; p = 0.009), BMI (r = -0.394; p = 0.046) and hypertension (r = -0.637; p = 0.001). Conclusion: We conclude that vitamin D deficiency is extremely common among candidates to BS, who are associated with DM2 and DLPM. Although there are limited data regarding the best treatment for low Vitamin D status in BS candidate patients, screening for vitamin D deficiency should be regularly performed in cases of morbid obesity.

Threshold values of sagittal abdominal diameter for the detection of cardio-metabolic risk factors in Northeastern Mexico: a cross-sectional study

Background: The use of sagittal abdominal diameter (SAD) has been proposed for screening cardio-metabolic risk factors; however, its accuracy can be influenced by the choice of thresholds values. Aim: To determine the SAD threshold values for cardio-metabolic risk factors in Mexican adults; to assess whether parallel and serial SAD testing can improve waist circumference (WC) sensitivity and specificity; and to analyze the effect of considering SAD along with WC and body mass index (BMI) in detecting cardio-metabolic risk. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted during 2012-2014 in Northeast Mexico (n = 269). Data on anthropometric, clinical, and biochemical measurements were collected. Sex-adjusted receiver-operating characteristic curves (ROC) were obtained using hypertension, dysglycemia, dyslipidemia and insulin resistance as individual outcomes and metabolic syndrome as a composite outcome. Age-adjusted odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were estimated using logistic regression. Results: The threshold value for SAD with acceptable combination of sensitivity and specificity was 24.6 cm in men and 22.5 cm in women. Parallel SAD testing improved WC sensitivity and serial testing improved WC specificity. The co-occurrence of high WC/high SAD increased the risk for insulin resistance by 2.4-fold (95% CI: 1.1-5.3), high BMI/high SAD by 4.3-fold (95% CI: 1.7-11.9) and SAD alone by 2.2-fold (95% CI: 1.2.-4.2). Conclusions: The use of SAD together with traditional obesity indices such as WC and BMI has advantages over using either of these indices alone. SAD may be a powerful screening tool for interventions for high-risk individuals.

Glycemic index role on visceral obesity, subclinical inflammation and associated chronic diseases

Background: It is believed that the glycemic index (GI) may be used as a strategy to prevent and control noncommunicable diseases (NCD). Obesity is a multifactorial condition, a risk factor for development of other NCDs. Among the different types, abdominal obesity is highlighted, which is essential for the diagnosis of metabolic syndrome, and it is related to insulin resistance, dyslipi-demia, hypertension and changes in levels of inflammatory markers. Such indicators are closely related to the development of Type 2 Diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Objectives: Discuss the role of GI as a strategy for the prevention and/or treatment of visceral obesity, subclinical inflammation and chronic diseases. Results and discussion: The intake of low GI diets is associated with glycemic decreases, and lower and more consistent postprandial insulin release, avoiding the occurrence of hypoglycemia. Moreover, consumption of a low GI diet has been indicated as beneficial for reducing body weight, total body fat and visceral fat, levels of proinflammatory markers and the occurrence of dyslipidemia and hypertension. The intake of low GI foods should be encouraged in order to prevent and control non-communicable diseases.

A genetic variant of the CAPN10 gene in Mexican subjects with dyslipidemia is associated with increased HDL-cholesterol concentrations after the consumption of a soy protein and soluble fiber dietary portfolio

Dyslipidemia is a major public health problem, and therefore, it is important to develop dietary strategies to diminish the prevalence of this disorder. It was recently reported that diet may play an important role in triggering insulin resistance by interacting with genetic variants at the CAPN10 gene locus in patients with metabolic syndrome. Nonetheless, it remains unknown whether genetic variants of genes involved in the development of type 2 diabetes are associated with variations in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C). The study used a single-center, prospective, cohort design. Here, we assessed the effect of four variants of the CAPN10 gene on HDL-C levels in response to a soy protein and soluble fiber dietary portfolio in subjects with dyslipidemia. In 31 Mexican dyslipidemic individuals, we analyzed four CAPN10 gene variants (rs5030952, rs2975762, rs3792267, and rs2975760) associated with type 2 diabetes. Subjects with the GG genotype of the rs2975762 variant of the CAPN10 gene were better responders to dietary intervention, showing increased HDL-C concentrations from the first month of treatment. HDL-C concentrations in participants with the wild type genotype increased by 17.0%, whereas the HDL-C concentration in subjects with the variant genotypes increased by only 3.22% (p = 0.03); the low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels of GG carriers tended to decrease (-12.6%). These results indicate that Mexican dyslipidemic carriers of the rs2975762-GG genotype are better responders to this dietary intervention.