Metabolic Syndrome Among Primary Health Care Nursing Professionals: A Cross-Sectional Population-Based Study

Abstract

This research aims at evaluating prevalence and factors associated with metabolic syndrome (MS) in primary health care (PHC) nursing professionals. A multicenter, population-based and cross-sectional study was conducted in a team-tested sample of 1125 PHC nurses in the state of Bahia, Brazil. Sociodemographic, labor, lifestyle and human biology variables were investigated by mean of anamnesis. MS was evaluated according to the criteria of the first Brazilian Guideline for Metabolic Syndrome, which fully adopts the criteria of the National Cholesterol Education Program’s Adult Treatment Panel III. MS-associated factors were tested by using robust Poisson Regression. The prevalence of MS found was 24.4%; low High Density Lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol was the most prevalent component of the syndrome. In the multivariate analysis, physical inactivity (PR = 1.25, 95% CI = 1.02–1.53), alcohol use (PR = 1.84, 95% CI = 1.22–2.77), acanthosis nigricans (PR = 3.23, 95% CI = 2.65–3.92), burnout syndrome (PR = 1.45, 95% CI = 1.17–1.81), (PR = 1.37, 95% CI = 1.12–1.69), working as a nursing technician (PR = 1.43, 95% CI = 1.14–1.80), were associated to MS. It was found that the prevalence of MS was high, which evidences the need for interventions in the PHC environment, improvement of working conditions, monitoring of worker safety and health, diet programs and physical activity.

Risk Factors of Metabolic Syndrome among Polish Nurses

“…The logistic regression models show that age 51-55 increases the chance of MS occurrence 4.051 times in relation to the age of 50 years; age over 55 increases the occurrence 3.279 times. These findings are in line with the study which evaluated prevalence and factors associated with MS in nurses in Brazil [40]. It is similar to other investigations [41,59,60].…”

“…In the study of Conceição das Merces et al [ 40 ], 24.4% of examined nurses had MS, but in their study, 52.2% of the population were under 35 years old. The average age in our study was 52.2 years.…”

“…Because of their biomedical education and interdisciplinary competences, nurses should demonstrate a particularly high level of pro-health awareness and motivation, which, in turn, can be implemented for the sake of own health, as well as that of the patients [ 37 , 38 , 39 ]. The Brazilian study, based on the data of over a thousand nurses, indicates a high level of MS prevalence in this professional group and its association with work environment, stress and occupational burnout [ 40 ]. Additionally, Ribeiro indicates that anxiety and depression [ 41 ], as confirmed by the evidence available in the literature, and a stressful work environment are associated with the incidence of cardiovascular disease and the development of MS [ 42 , 43 , 44 ].…”

Burnout and metabolic syndrome among healthcare workers: Is subclinical hypothyroidism a mediator?

“…According to previous research conclusions, working character, age, and gender can influence the prevalence of MetS and burnout. 6 , 7 , 8 , 11 According to Schaufeli et al, 23 patients/clients hope to have more concern, care, empathy, and compassion, and the character of job has a continuous and close relationship with patients/clients, the higher the risk of burnout, such as HCWs, police, and teachers. In our results, the working character of the doctor/nurse group echoes the conclusions mentioned in the previous studies.…”

“…Studies have reported that burnout is positively associated with MetS in nursing staff. 6 , 7 , 8 Moreover, evidence has shown that SCH is associated with burnout and MetS (edges a and b in Figure 1 ). The TSH level is reportedly higher in chronic stress conditions, suggesting that it induces changes in the psycho‐endocrine system.…”