ESPE Abstracts

Introduction: Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a group of conditions that occur simultaneously, involving excess body fat, arterial hypertension, impaired glucose metabolism and dyslipidemia. Establishing effective preventive measures and therapies requires an understanding of the relationship between childhood obesity and the early development of MetS components.

Objective: The aim of this study was to identify and explore the early components of MetS present in overweight and obese children.

Results: A retrospective observational study was conducted on 86 patients aged 0-18 years old diagnosed with MetS, who were admitted to the Endocrinology Department of "Louis Turcanu" Children’s Clinical and Emergency Hospital in Timisoara, Romania. The study utilized clinical and biological data collected over 5 years and 3 months, from January 2018 to April 2023. We highlighted the connections between age group, overweight, obesity, high blood pressure, impaired glucose metabolism, dyslipidemia and early MetS development. It was shown that the prevalence of MetS was higher in males (66%), rather than in females (34%). By further stratifying the patients based on age, specifically into prepubertal (< 10 years), pubertal (10-15 years), and adolescents (15-18 years), it was observed that the highest prevalence of MetS and its components was, as anticipated, among pubertal children (47 out of the total 86 patients). Based on body mass index (BMI) percentiles for sex and age, children were classified as overweight and obese, and the results showed a strong correlation between the 64 obese patients (74.4%) and 18 overweight patients (20.9%) and additional MetS components. Overall, the study identified a total of 72 cases with hyperglycemia (83,7%) and 46 cases with high blood pressure (53.4%). The most significant abnormalities observed in the lipid profile were high LDL cholesterol values, which were abnormal in 97.6% of the patients, and elevated triglyceride levels, which were found in 76.7% of the cases.

Conclusions: This study provides data to support the hypothesis that children who are overweight or obese are predisposed for acquiring metabolic syndrome early in life. The results emphasize the crucial importance of implementing early preventive and interventional strategies to reduce childhood obesity and decrease the incidence of MetS.