2Selçuk Üniversitesi Selçuklu Tıp Fakültesi Nöroloji Anabilim Dalı KONYA Introduction: Recent studies have indicated that vascular risk factors and metabolic syndrome may contribute to the process of Alzheimer's disease. The aim of this study was to evaluate the metabolic syndrome and its components in etiopathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease and the possible influences of these factors and gender.
Materials and Method: Fifty-one patients were included in the study. Global deterioration scale and Standardized Mini-Mental Test (SMMT) were applied to all patients. Forty-two individuals with no cognitive complaint and normal results for SMMT were included as the control group. NCEP-ATP III criteria were used for the diagnosis of metabolic syndrome.
Findings: Fifty-one patients (18 male, 33 female) and 42 controls (25 male, 17 female) were matched for age (73.47±6.49 and 73.04±4.61, respectively). The frequencies of metabolic syndrome (p=0.013) and its components [high waist circumference (p=0.001), hyperglycemia (p=0.05) and hypertriglyceridemia (p=0.040)] were significantly higher in female patients when compared to the male patients.
Conclusion: Our results support a relation between Alzheimer's disease and metabolic syndrome and its components of high waist circumference, hyperglycemia and hypertriglyceridemia in women and suggest that different physiopathological mechanisms with respect to gender may be effective in this neurodegenerative process. Furthermore metabolic factors in women may contribute more prominently to the disease pathogenesis.
Keywords : Metabolic Syndrome X/complications; Metabolic Syndrome X/epidemiology; Alzheimer Disease; Dementia; Risk Factors