OBJECTIVE: Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is associated with chronic inflammation and cardiovascular disease. The present study's aim was to investigate the relationship between serum C-reactive protein (CRP) and MetS in the Mongolian population in comparison to the Japanese population. METHODS: Two-hundred and eighty-five Mongolian volunteers (males/females: 115/170, mean age 44.9 years) and 326 Japanese volunteers (males/females: 137/189, mean age 43.6 years) were recruited from health check-up settings. Cardiometabolic variables including CRP were measured. The patients were divided into three groups by the number of MetS risk factors (< 1, 1-2 or > or = 3). RESULTS: The percentages of patients with MetS were 39.6% in the Mongolians and 31.1% in the Japanese. The median CRP levels were .05, .12 and .19 mg/dL in the < 1, 1-2 and > or =3 MetS risk factor groups among Mongolians, and .03, .05 and .07 mg/dL in these same groups among Japanese. The significance for the trend for CRP levels within each ethnic group was P < .001, and the significance for the difference in CRP levels between the respective groups by the MetS risk factors was P = .03 in subjects with < 1, P < .001 in subjects with 1-2, P < .001 in subjects with > or = 3. These results were similar in the subgroup analyses by sex. CONCLUSIONS: While higher serum CRP levels were seen with increased MetS risk factors in both ethnic groups, in some cases we observed a higher serum CRP level increase in the Mongolian population than in the Japanese population. Mongolian people may be at greater risk for cardiovascular disease.
OBJECTIVE:Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is associated with chronic inflammation and cardiovascular disease. The present study's aim was to investigate the relationship between serum C-reactive protein (CRP) and MetS in the Mongolian population in comparison to the Japanese population. METHODS: Two-hundred and eighty-five Mongolian volunteers (males/females: 115/170, mean age 44.9 years) and 326 Japanese volunteers (males/females: 137/189, mean age 43.6 years) were recruited from health check-up settings. Cardiometabolic variables including CRP were measured. The patients were divided into three groups by the number of MetS risk factors (< 1, 1-2 or > or = 3). RESULTS: The percentages of patients with MetS were 39.6% in the Mongolians and 31.1% in the Japanese. The median CRP levels were .05, .12 and .19 mg/dL in the < 1, 1-2 and > or =3 MetS risk factor groups among Mongolians, and .03, .05 and .07 mg/dL in these same groups among Japanese. The significance for the trend for CRP levels within each ethnic group was P < .001, and the significance for the difference in CRP levels between the respective groups by the MetS risk factors was P = .03 in subjects with < 1, P < .001 in subjects with 1-2, P < .001 in subjects with > or = 3. These results were similar in the subgroup analyses by sex. CONCLUSIONS: While higher serum CRP levels were seen with increased MetS risk factors in both ethnic groups, in some cases we observed a higher serum CRP level increase in the Mongolian population than in the Japanese population. Mongolian people may be at greater risk for cardiovascular disease.