Endocrine Abstracts

Obesity is an independent risk factor for the development of cardiovascular disease, frequently associated with various metabolic disorders defined as metabolic syndrome. High plasma total homocysteine (Hcy) concentration is now well established as a powerful risk indicator for a wide range of vascular diseases.

The aim of this study was to investigate total Hcy levels in obese children and their possible association with both metabolic syndrome and various inflammatory biomarkers.

The study group consisted of 61 obese children, (aged 6–18 y.) with metabolic syndrome, defined according to NCEP-ATP III criteria and 122 obese counterparts without metabolic syndrome. Both group were comparable regarding to age, sex, and pubertal development.

The obese subject with metabolic syndrome presented significantly higher values for fasting insulin (P<.001), HOMA IR (P<.001), C-reactive proteine (P<.01), interleukin-6 (P<.001), interleukin-1ß (P<.01), and WBC (P<.001). In the group with metabolic syndrome plasma Hcy concentration was positively correlated with insulin (P<.001), HOMA IR (P<.01), C-reactive protein (P<.001), interleukin-6 (P,.01) and WBC (P,.05), but not in the group without metabolic syndrome.

Elevated plasma Hcy level in obese children with metabolic syndrome, may be causally involved in the pathogenesis of cardiovascular disease.