Abstract

BACKGROUND
The risks of both type 2 diabetes mellitus and cardiovascular disease are mainly associated with the metabolic syndrome which is characterized by clustering of metabolic risk factors, including abdominal obesity, glucose intolerance, hypertension, and dyslipidemia. This study aimed to examine the relations among metabolic risk variables and the underlying structure of the metabolic syndrome that unites related components. METHODS: Subjects were selected by stratified random cluster sampling among persons aged over 40 years from a rural area. Waist circumference, BMI, fasting glucose, fasting insulin, triglycerides, HDL cholesterol, systolic blood pressure, and diastolic blood pressure were used as risk variables of metabolic syndrome. Factor analysis, a multivariate correlation statistical technique, was performed on a dataset from nondiabetic 3,443 men and women without history of coronary heart disease. RESULTS: Exploratory factor analysis identified three factors in both gender (obesity, hypertension, and dyslipidemia-insulin resistance in men; obesity-insulin resistance, hypertension, and dyslipidemia in women). Fasting insulin was a common contributor to the structure of metabolic syndrome in male subjects, smokers and alcohol drinking group. Confirmatory factor analysis based on the results of exploratory factor analysis revealed that metabolic syndrome was represented primarily by obesity factor in men, obesity-insulin resistance factor in women, and that dyslipidemia factor was highly correlated with obesity factor in men, with insulin resistance factor in women. CONCLUSION: Underlying structure of metabolic syndrome was different between men and women, and obesity might be a primary target for prevention of both type 2 diabetes mellitus and cardiovascular disease in Korea.

• Keywords: Confirmatory factor analysis;Exploratory factor analysis;Metabolic syndrome;Obesity