Association Between Pulse Index and Metabolic syndrome in Individuals with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: Outcome of a Twelve-Weeks Therapeutic Exercise

Background and Objective: Metabolic syndrome (MS) is an entity with clustering of cardiovascular risk factors and is associated with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM). Low level cardiovascular fitness is also associated with risk of T2DM. An association between Pulse Index (PI) and MS requires further description. This study sought to determine the association between PI and components of MS. Methods: Seventy-seven participants/subjects aged 48.6±6.52 years with T2DM were enrolled into the study at Aminu-Kano Teaching Hospital, Kano, Nigeria. PI and components of MS including Fasting Blood Glucose (FBG), Glycosylated Haemoglobin (HBAlc), High-Density Lipoprotein (HDL-CHOL), Triglycerides (TRIG.), Blood Pressure (BP) and obesity were assessed before and after twelve-week therapeutic exercises. Results: Inverse correlations were obtained for PI and each ofFBG (r=-0.45), HBAlc (r=-0.52), TRIG (r=-0.26), BP(r=-0.43/-0.32), Waist Circumference (r=-0.53), BMI (r=-0.79), blood pressure (r=-0.43/-0.32) except HDL-CHOL (r= 0.67), (P< 0.05 for all the subjects/participants). Conclusions: Low-levels of PI were associated with poor glycaemia, hypertension, obesity and dyslipidaemia. Therapeutic exercises aimed at improving cardiovascular fitness may have significant improvement on MS. which in turn aids the prevention of both T2DM and cardiovascular diseases. Keywords: Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus, Cardiovascular fitness, aerobic exercises, Pulse Index'