Metabolic syndrome in hypertensive patients: correlation between anthropometric data and laboratory findings: response to Bulhões and Araújo.

C ardiovascular disease is the principal cause of morbidity and mortality in Brazil with a mortality coefficient of 442 per 100,000 inhabitants (1). In 90% of the individuals with a diagnosis of arterial hypertension, no causal agent is identified; however, current knowledge tends to suggest the importance of increased BMI (particularly as a result of visceral fat) in the physiopathology of this disease. In 1988, Reaven and Hoffman (2) identified the following components of a specific syndrome that would define increased cardiovascular risk: insulin resistance, glucose intolerance, hyperinsulinemia, elevated triglycerides, reduced HDL cholesterol, and arterial hypertension. The prevalence of metabolic syndrome increases substantially with aging, as does the incidence of diabetes (3). Metabolic syndrome is strongly predictive of future diabetes (4), and its presence in hypertensive patients who may be at risk for diabetes should be investigated. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the prevalence of metabolic syndrome in hypertensive, nondiabetic outpatients.