Metabolic Syndrome among Undergraduate Students Attending Medical Clinics for Obligatory Medical Screening

Purpose: To determine the prevalence and risk factors for metabolic syndrome (MS) among first-year undergraduate students in three Sudanese universities.Methods: A total of 384 first-year students attending university medical clinics for obligatory medical checkup in Khartoum, Sudan participated in this cross-sectional study. Anthropometric parameters, including weight, height, body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference (WC) were measured with reference to National Cholesterol Education Program’s Adult Treatment Panel III (NCEP/ATP III) guidelines. Fasting blood samples were collected from all participants and assayed for fasting blood glucose (FBG), total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), high density lipoprotein (HDL), and low density lipoprotein (LDL).Results: The overall prevalence of MS in the test group was 7.8 %. The prevalence of MS, though higher in females, was statistically not significant (p = 0.32). According to residential area (rural – urban), the prevalence was higher in urban than rural, 10.4 and 4.4 %, respectively (p = 0.25 and p = 0.25, respectively). In addition, frequency of MS was directly proportional to age. The weight of patients with MS was significantly different from that of non-MS subjects (p ˂ 0.001). Same was also observed when obese patients were compared with non-MS subjects. (p ˂ 0.001).Conclusion: The prevalence of MS among Sudanese first-year university students in Khartoum is moderately high. Incidence of MS among the students is directly proportional to BMI.Keywords: Metabolic syndrome, Obesity, Hypertension, Diabetes, Dyslipidemia, Anthropometri

Serum trace elements in insulin-dependent and non-insulin-dependent diabetes: a comparative study

Ahmed M Ahmed,1 Omar F Khabour,1,2 Akram H Awadalla,3 Hisham A Waggiallah4 1Department of Clinical Laboratory Sciences, Faculty of Applied Medical Sciences, Taibah University, Medina, Saudi Arabia; 2Department of Medical Laboratory Sciences, Faculty of Applied Medical Sciences, Jordan University of Science and Technology, Irbid, Jordan; 3Department of Clinical Chemistry, College of Medical Laboratory Sciences, Kordofan University, Alobayid, Sudan; 4Department of Medical Laboratory Sciences, Sattam Bin Abdulaziz University, Alkharj, Saudi Arabia Background: Diabetes mellitus is associated with imbalance in body trace elements. The aim of the current investigation was to compare the levels of trace elements (Zn, Mg, Mn, Cu, Na, K, Fe, Ca, Cr, and Se) in insulin dependent (IDDM) and non-insulin dependent (NIDDM) diabetes. Methods: A total of 100 patients with diabetes (40 IDDM and 60 NIDDM) and 50 healthy subjects were recruited in the study from both genders. Biochemical measures include glucose, lipids, and HbA1C. Results: The results showed that Zn, Mg, Cu and Cr were significant lower in patients with diabetes compared to the control group (P<0.01). In addition, Zn and Cr were significantly lower in IDDM than NIDDM (P<0.05). Moreover, Zn and Mg levels were inversely correlated with HbA1c in IDDM and NIDDM (P<0.05). Zn was inversely correlated with fasting blood glucose in IDDM (P<0.05). Finally, no correlation between trace element levels with BMI was found (P>0.05). Conclusion: Disturbance in trace element profile among IDDM and NIDDM is similar. Keywords: trace elements, diabetes mellitus, IDDM, NIDD