Is prevalence of metabolic syndrome high in patients with asthma?

AIM: It has been reported that people with asthma may have an increased risk of cardiovascular disease and metabolic disorders due to direct involvement of common inflammatory mediators. Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is also characterized by inflammation, In this study, we hypothesised that the prevalence of MetS would increase in patients with asthma. Based on this, we evaluated the prevalence of MetS in patients with asthma and the relationship between asthma and cardiometabolic risk factors.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study included a total of 188 non-diabetic patients. The asthma group (70 female, 20 male, mean age: 43.83 +/- 10.98) included the patients who were diagnosed with asthma by a pulmonologist, while the control group (81 female, 17 male, mean age: 42.01 +/- 9.21) included non-asthmatic patients who presented for routine health control. The primary endpoint of the study was to compare the prevalence of MetS between the groups, while the secondary endpoint was to evaluate the relationship between asthma and cardiometabolic risk factors such as body mass index, waist circumference, blood pressure, lipid parameters, C-reactive protein, fasting plasma glucose, uric acid and homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance. The International Diabetes Federation criteria were used for the diagnosis of MetS.
RESULTS: Although the prevalence of MetS was slightly higher in the asthma group than in the control group (36.7% vs. 33.7%, respectively), the difference was not statistically significant (p > 0.05). In multivariate logistic regression analysis, C-reactive protein (OR 2.204; 95% CI; 1, 129-4, 303) was associated with asthma.
CONCLUSION: Although there are numerous rational theories proposing that asthma can be associated with MetS, the results of the present study, which was conducted with a limited number of patients, find no arguments for higher prevalence of MetS in asthma patients compared to the overall population.