Impact of urbanization and gender on frequency of metabolic syndrome among native Abuja settlers in Nigeria

BACKGROUND

Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is an important cause of morbidity and mortality. Nigeria is currently undergoing rapid epidemiological transition. The objective was to study whether urbanization is associated with increased prevalence of MetS between native rural Abuja settlers and genetically related urban dwellers.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

It was a cross-sectional study. Three hundred and forty-two urban native Abuja settlers and 325 rural dwellers were used for the study. Fasting blood lipid, glucose, waist circumference, blood pressure, and body mass index were determined. MetS was defined according to three standard criteria. SPSS 16.0 was used for statistical analysis. P<0.05 was used as statistically significant.

RESULTS

Obesity, hypertriglyceridemia, and hypertension were commoner among urban dwellers than rural dwellers. MetS was associated more with the female gender. Urbanization significantly increases the frequency of MetS using the three standard definitions. The prevalence of MetS using International Diabetes Federation, World Health Organization, and National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III among rural versus urban dwellers were 7.7% vs. 14.9%, P<0.05; 0% vs. 0.9%, P>0.05; and 3.7% vs. 13.7%, P<0.05, respectively.

CONCLUSION

This study shows that MetS is a major health condition among rural and urban Nigerians and that urbanization significantly increases the prevalence of MetS. This can be explained on the basis of higher prevalence of dyslipidemia, obesity, and hypertension in urban setting, possibly as a result of stress, diet, and reduction in physical activity. Effective preventive strategy is therefore required to stem the increased risk associated with urbanization to reduce the cardiovascular risk associated with MetS among Nigerians.

Prevalence of left ventricular diastolic dysfunction in newly diagnosed Nigerians with systemic hypertension: a pulsed wave Doppler echocardiographic study

BACKGROUND

Systemic hypertension is a common cause of left ventricular diastolic dysfunction. However, its prevalence in Nigerians with untreated systemic hypertension is unknown.

OBJECTIVE

To determine the prevalence of left ventricular diastolic dysfunction in newly diagnosed Nigerians with systemic hypertension using Doppler transmitral inflow and pulmonary venous flow velocities.

METHODS

Two-dimensional echocardiography including Doppler was performed on 150 newly diagnosed cases of systemic hypertension and 150 normotensive controls. They were divided into hypertensives without left ventricular hypertrophy and those with left ventricular hypertrophy based on echocardiographically determined left ventricular mass index. Pulsed Doppler transmitral inflow and the pulmonary venous flow waves were used to categorise the patterns of diastolic dysfunction.

RESULTS

The hypertensives and the normotensive controls were comparable in their baseline characteristics. The E/A ratio differed significantly between hypertensives with and without left ventricular hypertrophy and controls (1.00+0.30, 1.04±0.42, 1.33±0.27, p < 0.001). Left ventricular diastolic dysfunction occurred in 62% of systemic hypertension and 11.3% of the controls. Impaired relaxation was the commonest pattern (84.9%) of diastolic dysfunction.

CONCLUSION

Our study showed that left ventricular diastolic dysfunction is prevalent in Nigerians with newly diagnosed systemic hypertension and effort should be made to routinely screen for them.