As metabolic syndrome (MetS) is one of the major determinants of cardiovascular disease, it is important to detect and intervene with MetS in order to minimize cardiovascular risk. The objectives of this study were to identify the prevalence of MetS in our elderly patients and to evaluate the ability IDF and ATP III to predict the cardiovascular risk. Materials and methods: This cross-sectional study included patients above 65 years attending the outpatient clinic of a hospital over a 4-year period and who gave oral informed consent for participation in the study. ATP III and IDF criteria were compared according to their predictive value for identifying cardiovascular risk factors detected by Framingham risk scoring. SPSS ver. 11 was used for statistical analysis. Results: Of the 211 patients (114 men, 97 women) included in the study, mean age was 70.1 ± 4.1 years for women and 70.6 ± 4.6 years for men (P > 0.05). Using the ATP III definition, metabolic syndrome prevalence was 29.9%. Based on the IDF definition, this rate was 46.4%. ATP III criteria had a better likelihood ratio for estimating cardiovascular risk than did IDF criteria (4 vs. 2.58). Conclusion: MetS prevalence was high in our elderly population. MetS defined by ATP III criteria has a higher predictive ability for estimating cardiovascular risk in the elderly group than IDF criteria.

As metabolic syndrome (MetS) is one of the major determinants of cardiovascular disease, it is important to detect and intervene with MetS in order to minimize cardiovascular risk. The objectives of this study were to identify the prevalence of MetS in our elderly patients and to evaluate the ability IDF and ATP III to predict the cardiovascular risk. Materials and methods: This cross-sectional study included patients above 65 years attending the outpatient clinic of a hospital over a 4-year period and who gave oral informed consent for participation in the study. ATP III and IDF criteria were compared according to their predictive value for identifying cardiovascular risk factors detected by Framingham risk scoring. SPSS ver. 11 was used for statistical analysis. Results: Of the 211 patients (114 men, 97 women) included in the study, mean age was 70.1 ± 4.1 years for women and 70.6 ± 4.6 years for men (P > 0.05). Using the ATP III definition, metabolic syndrome prevalence was 29.9%. Based on the IDF definition, this rate was 46.4%. ATP III criteria had a better likelihood ratio for estimating cardiovascular risk than did IDF criteria (4 vs. 2.58). Conclusion: MetS prevalence was high in our elderly population. MetS defined by ATP III criteria has a higher predictive ability for estimating cardiovascular risk in the elderly group than IDF criteria.