Background: Inflammation is linked to the aetiopathogenesis of Metabolic syndrome (MetS). Objective: To assess the ability of high sensitivity C-Reactive Protein (hs-CRP), Tumour Necrosis Factor-alpha (TNFα) and Interleukin-6 (IL-6) to predict MetS. Methods: A case-control study involving 123 subjects with MetS (cases) and age-matched 123 subjects. without MetS (controls) was conducted. The levels of TNFα, IL-6, and hs-CRP between independent groups were compared. The Receiver Operative Characteristic Curve was used to assess the ability of inflammatory markers to discriminately identify MetS. Results: The mean age of the case and control groups was 49.9±0.9 years and 48.1±1.1 years (p = 0.274) respectively. The median levels of TNFα, IL-6 and hS-CRP were significantly higher among the cases than the control group in both genders (p <0.001). There was a significant increase in the serum values of the markers with increasing components of MetS (p <0.001). The Area Under the Curve of TNFα, IL-6 and hs-CRP was > 0.9 in both males and females. Conclusion: TNFα, IL-6, and hs-CRP identified MetS. There is a need for further studies to determine the inflammatory marker most predictive of MetS.

No abstract

Background: Insulin resistance (IR) is linked with the pathophysiology of some non-communicable diseases including Type 2 Diabetes mellitus and metabolic syndrome. Objective: To determine the factors associated with IR among apparently healthy individuals in South-west Nigeria. Methods: A cross-sectional study of a cohort of apparently healthy volunteers aged 18 years and above consecutively recruited from two communities was conducted. IR was determined using the homeostasis model assessment for IR (HOMA-IR) based on the cut off values of ≥ 2. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were used to determine the crude and adjusted odds ratio of IR associated factors. Results: A total of 520 participants aged 18–89 years were recruited for the study. Their mean age was 46.7±14.6 years and the prevalence of IR was 43.5%. Alcohol intake (AOR = 2.1, 95%CI 1.3 – 3.4; p<0.001), lack of physical exercise (AOR = 1.5, 95%CI 1.0 – 2.3), and Body Mass Index (AOR = 1.03, 95%CI 1.0 – 1.1) were the factors associated with IR. Conclusion: The prevalence of IR among apparently healthy individuals in this study was high. The need for proactive measures to avert the sequelae of IR is of utmost importance.