Abstract
Purpose: :
To determine whether there is an association between Idiopathic Intracranial Hypertension (IIH) and Metabolic Syndrome (MS).
Methods: :
A retrospective review was performed of all patients with a diagnosis of IIH seen between July 2010 to November 2011. The primary outcome measure was presence or absence of MS as defined by the American Heart Association and the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute.
Results: :
44 female patients were included, 31 (70%) of which met the criteria for MS. Mean age at diagnosis of the MS group was 36.9 years versus 29.2 years in the non MS group (p=.0028). A significant difference was found between triglyceride level, fasting blood glucose, hemoglobin A1c, systolic blood pressure, and diastolic blood pressure (p= 0.0020, 0.0014, 0.0059, 0.000045, 0.014, respectively) of the MS and non MS patients. Body mass index, waist circumference, opening pressure, and high density lipoprotein level were not significantly different between the two groups.
Conclusions: :
A high percentage of patients with IIH also have MS, suggesting an association. Patients with IIH and MS had higher age at diagnosis, triglyceride levels, fasting blood glucose, hemoglobin A1c, and systolic and diastolic blood pressure compared to patients without MS. Whether MS is a co-morbidity of IIH or plays a role in the pathogenesis of IIH remains to be investigated.
Keywords: neuro-ophthalmology: diagnosis