The aim of this study was to evaluate the risk of mortality according to the presence of metabolic syndrome in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients who were followed for 5 years. We did not establish the influence of metabolic syndrome on mortality rate. However, an increase of 100 mg of triglycerides was associated with a 39% increase in the probability of death in the period of the study (hazard ratio 1.39, 95% confidence interval 1.06-1.83).