High metabolic syndrome severity linked to development of CKD

High metabolic syndrome (MetS) severity, expressed by the continuous metabolic syndrome severity score (cMetS-S), is associated with development of chronic kidney disease (CKD), according to a study recently published in Kidney Diseases.

Ladan Mehran, M.D., Ph.D., from the Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences in Tehran, Iran, and colleagues examined the association between the trajectory of cMetS-S and development of CKD in a population-based study involving 4,462 participants aged 20 to 60 years free of CKD at baseline who were followed at three-year intervals. cMetS-S trajectories were examined over nine years (1999 to 2009) and the subsequent risks for incident CKD were assessed eight years later (2010 to 2018).

During the exposure period, three cMetS-S trajectory groups were identified: low, medium, and high (28.3%, 50.0%, and 21.7%, respectively). The researchers found that after adjustment for age, sex, education, smoking, physical activity, baseline estimated glomerular filtration rate, and even after further adjustment for MetS components, a high cMetS-S trajectory pattern was associated with an increased risk for CKD (hazard ratio, 1.32). Even in normoglycemic, nonobese, and nonhypertensive individuals, the associated risk remained significant. The MetS severity score was associated with CKD only in men in a sex-specific subgroup analysis.

“Physicians can monitor metabolic health changes by including the MetS score in routine lab results, allowing for improved metabolic health management through self-awareness and health behavior adjustments at no extra expense,” the authors write. “Additional research is required to establish the risk thresholds for health results within the scoring framework.”

Copyright © 2025 HealthDay. All rights reserved.