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Abstract

The high prevalence of non-communicable diseases is a challenging problem in the Cameroonian population and women are the most affected. The aim of the present study was to determine and compare the prevalence of metabolic abnormalities and metabolic syndrome (MetS) among pre- and post-menopausal women living in urban areas in Cameroon. A total of 499 women were recruited during a mass health campaign. Metabolic abnormalities were diagnosed using the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) criteria. MetS was defined using IDF criteria with slight modification (total cholesterol used instead of HDL cholesterol). Logistic regression was used to estimate the association between menopausal status and metabolic abnormalities and MetS in age control and non-control models. The prevalence of high waist-to-hip ratio (56.8% vs 36.3%, p < 0.001), elevated fasting blood glucose (glycemia � 100 mg/dL) (38.7% vs 26.9%, p = 0.006); diabetes (14.6% vs 5.7%, p = 0.001); high triglycerides level (29.7% vs 17.1%, p = 0.002); hyperlipidemia (high total cholesterol and or triglycerides levels) (45.0% vs 30.8%, p = 0.002); and elevated blood pressure (67.9% vs 56.1%, p = 0.007) were higher among post-menopausal than pre-menopausal women. The overall prevalence of MetS was 30.1% and post-menopausal women were more affected (33.8% vs 25.0%; p = 0.034). The odds ratio of MetS was 1.888 (95% CI: 1.016 - 3.507) when age was covariate, but was slightly reduced without age control (OR = 1.532; 95% CI: 1.031 - 2.275). Metabolic abnormalities seem to be a major health problem among Cameroonian women and menopausal status increased the risk of developing a cardiovascular event. Keywords: Metabolic Abnormalities, MetS, Menopausal Status, Cameroonian Women

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