Validation of metabolic syndrome and its self reported components in the CUME study.

Abstract

The aim of this study was to analyze the validity of self-reported diagnoses of metabolic syndrome (MetS) and its components through participants of the Cohort of Universities of Minas Gerais (CUME). A subsample of 172 cohort participants (33 males and 139 females, age 38 ± 11 years) was randomly selected for this study. The presence of MetS was defined according to the criteria of the International Diabetes Federation (IDF). Data on weight, height, blood pressure, and serum concentration of glucose, triglycerides and HDL-c were self reported in an online cohort questionnaire, and the same variables were measured using a standardized protocol in laboratories of higher education institutions involved in the project. Self-reported and measured data were compared by means of intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC), Kappa coefficient (k) and differences between self-reported and measured data, according to the Bland and Altman method. The prevalence of MetS was 4.7% and 5.2% according to self-reported and measured data, respectively. The Kappa coefficient between diagnoses of self-reported and measured MetS was 0.814, indicating almost perfect agreement, a situation similar to that observed for obesity (k = 0.882). The other components of MetS had moderate agreement (k = 0.41 to 0.60). The ICC also indicated excellent agreement for weight, height, BMI and HDL-c, respectively, 0.989, 0.995, 0.983 and 0.761. Glucose presented low agreement (ICC: 0.366). The study concludes that the CUME project participants provided valid information for the self-reported diagnoses of MetS and its components.