Abstract
Background: Metabolic Syndrome (Met S) is a collection of concurring risk factors associated with cardiovascular conditions mainly insulin resistance, dyslipidemia, obesity and hypertension. The current study was designed to observe the prevalence of Met S in school going children and assess the association between various components of Met S.

Materials and Method: This analytical cross-sectional study was conducted on 72 school children who visited the outpatient department at King Khaled University Hospital from March 2016 to February 2017. Blood samples were collected from the participant enrolled in the study for haematological assay. Anthropometric study was done by calculating the Body Mass Index (BMI) and Waist Circumference (WC). Biochemical parameters such as glycemia, total cholesterol, LDLc, HDLc, and triglycerides were estimated to recognize the existence of Met S. The National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) consensus was used for defining Met S in children and adolescent.

Results: Our results showed the prevalence of Met S in 16.7% of the children. Waist circumference and LDLc were the most prominent risk factors for Met S and Diastolic blood pressure appeared to be the least prominent risk factor. Fasting blood sugar (FBS) was significantly higher on the comparison between metabolic and non-metabolic syndrome cases. A significant association was observed between fasting blood glucose (FBS) and Triglyceride levels when compared among males and females’ cases of Met S.

Conclusion: The high prevalence of Met S in children is a worrying panorama and a multifaceted approach concerning parents, educators, health professionals and this problem should be addressed more essentially through the media. We suggest more studies focusing on identification, intervention and prevention programs to reduce the risk factors of this syndrome in childhood and to reduce future diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Previous studies present with inconsistent findings in terms of both prevalence of Met S and using different criteria for defining Met S that needs formulating a universal definition of the metabolic syndrome for children.

Key words: Metabolic syndrome (Met S), obesity, prevalence, school children