Background and objectives: The aim was to investigate the association between peripheral circulating white blood cell count (WBC) and the metabolic syndrome among populations in central China.
Methods and study design: In the present study, 5,278 subjects (2,412 women, 2,866 men) aged 18-75 years were recruited through a health check program in Wuhan, China. Biochemical and haematological parameters were measured by standard methods and the metabolic syndrome diagnosed as defined by the Chinese Diabetes Society criteria for Chinese.
Results: Both WBC counts and prevalence of metabolic syndrome were significantly higher in men than in women (p<0.01). Participants in the highest quartile of white blood cell count had significantly higher odds ratio of metabolic syndrome (3.79, 95% CI: 2.64, 5.44), compared with subjects in the lowest quartile. The trend remained significant after adjustment for confounding factors and in further subgroup-analyses.
Conclusions: Metabolic syndrome prevalence was significantly and positively correlated with the total white blood cell count in this Chinese population.