Prevalence of the metabolic syndrome in post-menopausal women

Introduction and Objectives: Menopause represents a transition in female reproductive life, which has been associated with the development of typical characteristics of metabolic syndrome (MetS). These include increased abdominal central fat, impaired lipid profile and insulin resistance. Awareness MetS and its prevalence in pre and post-menopausal women, will be useful in developing future strategies to reduce its presence and with-it cardiovascular disease. Material and methods: This was a cross-sectional study, conducted in Barranquilla, Colombia between October and November 2016, in women of working age. The diagnosis of MetS was made with at least three of the five criteria proposed by the consensus of the International Diabetes Federation, the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, the American Heart Association, the World Heart Federation, the International Society of Atherosclerosis and the International Association for the Study of Obesity. Results: A total of 773 women were enrolled in our study, from which 78.65% were pre-menopausal (n=608) and 21.35% post-menopausal (n=165). The presence of MetS was seen in 27.8% (n=46) of post-menopausal in comparison to 14.6 % (n=89) of the pre-menopausal women, representing a statistically significant difference (Chi-square 15.7845 p <0.0001). Conclusions: MetS has a higher prevalence in post-menopausal women when compared to pre-menopausal women. As MetS is present, cardiovascular risk increases. This population should be identified early in time in order to screen, prevent and reduce their mortality.