The cut-off values of anthropometric indices for identifying subjects at risk for metabolic syndrome in Iranian elderly men.

AIM: This study aimed to investigate which anthropometric indices could be a better predictor of metabolic syndrome (MetS) and the cut-off points for these surrogates to appropriately differentiate MetS in the Iranian elderly. METHOD: The present cross-sectional study was conducted on a sample of Isfahan Healthy Heart Program (IHHP). MetS was defined according to Third Adult Treatment Panel (ATPIII). In total, 206 elderly subjects with MetS criteria were selected. Anthropometric indices were measured and plotted using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. RESULTS: WC followed by WHtR yielded the highest area under the curve (AUC) (0.683; 95% CI 0.606-0.761 and 0.680; 95% CI 0.602-0.758, resp.) for MetS. WC at a cut of 94.5 cm resulted in the highest Youden index with sensitivity 64% and 68% specificity to predict the presence of ≥2 metabolic risk factors. BMI had the lowest sensitivity and specificity for MetS and MetS components. WC has the best ability to detect MetS which followed by WHtR and BMI had a lower discriminating value comparatively. CONCLUSION: WC is the best predictor for predicting the presence of ≥2 metabolic risk factors among Iranian elderly population and the best value of WC is 94.5 cm. This cut-off values of WC should be advocated and used in Iranian men until larger cross-sectional studies show different results.

Simvastatin treatment reduces heat shock protein 60, 65, and 70 antibody titers in dyslipidemic patients: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, cross-over trial.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to evaluate the effects of statin therapy on serum levels of antibodies to several specific heat shock proteins (HSPs) in dyslipidemic patients. DESIGN AND METHODS: Participants (n=102) were treated with simvastatin (40mg/day), or placebo in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, cross-over trial. Anti-HSP60, 65, 70, and hs-CRP levels were measured before and after each treatment period. Seventy-seven subjects completed the study. RESULTS: Treatment with simvastatin was associated with significant reductions in serum anti-HSP60, 65, and 70 titers in the dyslipidemic patients (10%, 14%, and 15% decrease, respectively) (p<0.001). There have been previous reports of reductions in serum CRP with statin treatment, and although median CRP levels were 9% lower on simvastatin treatment, this did not achieve statistical significance. CONCLUSION: While it is unclear whether HSP antibodies are directly involved in atherogenesis, our findings suggest that simvastatin inhibits autoimmune responses that may contribute to the development of cardiovascular disease.