Assessment of metabolic syndrome and health related quality of life in community dwellers: A cross sectional study from North India

Abstract Introduction Metabolic syndrome is a widely prevalent multifactorial disorder. Its effect on quality of life remains a matter of concern. Objectives To find the effect of metabolic syndrome on the quality of life of community dwelling adults in rural Haryana. Materials and methodology This cross sectional study was conducted in rural population of district Ambala, Haryana.1200 individuals above the age of 20 years were selected by Multi stage cluster sampling from the six blocks of Ambala. The new clinical definition of the metabolic syndrome given by International Diabetes Federation was used to define metabolic syndrome. Quality of life was assessed by Short form survey (SF)-36 questionnaire. Results A total of 110 (9.2%) subjects out of 1200 were found to be having metabolic syndrome. 92.7% of the participants in the metabolic syndrome group were having Sf −36 scores between 0 and 50. Physical and mental scores of patients suffering from metabolic syndrome were significantly lower than non-metabolic syndrome group. Health related quality of life was found to be lowered in obese individuals. Discussion and conclusion Metabolic syndrome is a significant public health problem and health care workers can target community dwellers with obesity in the community to improve health related quality of life.