Metabolic syndrome influencing infarct size and heart failure in patients with acute coronary syndrome: does gender matter?

Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is the occurrence of diabetes mellitus/glucose intolerance, arterial hypertension, central obesity, dyslipidemia, and microalbuminuria in the same patient (definition by WHO). Presence of metabolic syndrome is associated with larger myocardial infarction size and complications following acute myocardial infarction. Two hundred and thirty patients with acute coronary syndromes were analyzed. Those with MetS (n=141) included patients with diabetes mellitus/glucose intolerance and at least two of the following criteria: hypertension, hypertriglyceridemia/low HDL cholesterol, android obesity/body mass index (BMI) ≥ 30, or microalbuminuria. Control group did not meet criteria for MetS. Presence of heart failure was assigned according to Killip classification. The MetS group had larger myocardial infarction size determined by peak creatine-kinase (CK) (1484±1354 vs. 981±890, p = 0.003) and CK MB (141±117 vs. 95±78, p = 0.002). While in non-MetS group males had larger myocardial infarction than females, in MetS group females had larger myocardial infarction than males. Cardiac failure occurred more in MetS group of patients, again was more prominent in females. Occurrence of metabolic syndrome in acute coronary syndrome patients predisposes to larger myocardial infarction size, more on the account of female patients having MetS. MetS, again particularly in females, predisposes to higher chance of having heart failure during acute coronary syndrome. Recognizing the female group with MetS as of higher risk for large myocardial infarction and heart failure leads us to pay special attention on this patient population.