Comparison of traditional and novel obesity-related indices for identification of metabolic syndrome in adults

Purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate the traditional and novel obesity-related indices in the determination of metabolic syndrome in adults and to determine which marker is the better predictor. Materials and Methods: A total of 419 adults between the ages of 18-65 were included in this study. Body weight, height, waist, hip and waist circumference, and blood pressure were measured; fasting blood glucose, total cholesterol, triglyceride, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol values were analyzed. Metabolic syndrome (MetS) was defined using the International Diabetes Federation criteria. The values of 23 obesity-related indices were calculated. Results: The prevalence of metabolic syndrome is 58.7% (male 41.2%; female 67.7%). The triglyceride glucose (TyG) index has the largest area under the curve (AUC) in both men (AUC = 0.894, cutoff = 3.9) and women (AUC = 0.901, cutoff = 3.9). In men, lipid accumulation product (LAP) had the second highest determination for MetS (AUC = 0.880, cut-off = 51.1), followed by TyG-waist/hip (AUC = 0.876, cut-off = 3.7). Cardiometabolic index (CMI) (AUC = 0.872, cut-off value = 1.3) and visceral adiposity index VAI (AUC = 0.868, cut-off value = 4.1) had the second and third largest AUCs, respectively, in women. Conclusion: TyG index is the best predictor of MetS. Waist circumference could be an alternative index in large epidemiology survey due to its convenient and cost-efective characteristics.