The Association Between C - reactive protein and Metabolic Syndrome Components

Background: Insulin resistance is associated with metabolic syndrome and is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease. C-reactive protein (CRP) is an inflammatory marker which is demonstrated as a strong predictor of future cardiovascular events. Material Method: In this study, sixty-three patients who were diagnosed with metabolic syndrome and twenty healthy controls were recruited. Fasting blood glucose, insulin and CRP levels were measured. Homeostasis Model Assessment (HOMA-IR) formula is used to evaluate insulin resistance. We investigated the relationship between insulin resistance and CRP levels and whether CRP is a metabolic syndrome criterion or not. Results: There were statistically significant differences between patients with metabolic syndrome and controls in terms of waist circumference, fasting glucose, insulin and CRP levels. In patients, we found a poor but significant relationship between fasting glucose levels and CRP (P=0.0001, r=0.3) and between HOMA-IR values and CRP (P=0.007, r=0.29). Conclusion: We concluded that CRP may have an important role in the diagnosis and follow-up of metabolic syndrome. Key words: Diabetes, Metabolic syndrome, CRP, HOMA, Insulin resistance, Waist circumference