Prevalence of metabolic syndrome in renal transplant recipients--a single centre experience.

OBJECTIVE To determine the prevalence of metabolic syndrome (MS) in renal transplant recipients (RTR) using the modified Asian National Cholesterol Education Programme-Adult Treatment Panel III (NCEP-ATP III) criteria. METHODS A cross-sectional study was conducted on 200 RTRs between January 2008-August 2008. All were more than six months post transplant and above 18 years of age. Subjects with pre-transplant diabetes or New Onset Diabetes Mellitus after renal transplantation, with overt infections, dyslipidaemia or on lipid lowering medication and taking immunosuppressive drugs of the target organ inhibitor group as rapamycin, were excluded. The prevalence of MS was determined using the (NCEP-ATP III) criteria modified for Asians which includes waist circumference, triglycerides, HDL cholesterol, blood pressure and fasting blood glucose. RESULTS Of the 200 recipients studied, 87 (43.5%) had MS. There were 58 (39.4%) males and 29 (54.7%) females which shows female predominance. The mean age of the MS group was more then that of the non MS group (p < 0.0001). Hypertension and New Onset Diabetes Mellitus were prevalent more in MS group (p < 0.001 and p < 0.0001 respectively). Mean serum creatinine was higher in MS group but there was no significant difference. The prevalence of MS was 4.5% in the first twelve months, with a rise in this figure to 41.3% between one to five years after transplantation. CONCLUSION There is a high prevalence of MS in Renal Transplant Recipients specifically after one year of transplantation.