Metabolic syndrome severity score is associated with diastolic dysfunction and low-grade inflammation in a community-based cohort

Abstract

Metabolic syndrome (MetS) affects approximately one out of three adults in western countries and it combines a cluster of cardiovascular risk factors. A continuous gender and race/ethnicity-specific MetS severity score was recently described and validated, and is an independent predictor of cardiovascular events, beyond individual MetS components. We aimed to assess if this score was associated with subclinical diastolic dysfunction. Additionally, we searched for a potential relationship between MetS severity score and inflammatory/insulin-resistance markers.