A 12 year study examined three separate definitions of the Metabolic Syndrome and how it can be used to predict major outcomes of diabetes (MOD). In case you were wondering, MOD is the easy way to explain complications like coronary artery disease, renal failure, diabetes-related death, or an aggregate of all of the above.

The study involved 514 type 1 diabetics. The three definitions of Metabolic Syndrome used for the study were taken from: NCEP ATP III (AHA Modified), International Diabetes Federation (IDF), and the World Health Organization (WHO). The prevalence of Metabolic Syndrome ranged from 8% (IDF) to 21% (WHO) at the conclusion of the 12-year follow-up. All definitions showed reasonable specificity (83%) for each outcome, while the WHO definition had the highest sensitivity for all outcomes except Renal Failure, for which eGDR was most sensitive. However, the individual assessment of each complication, rather than an aggregate estimate, was most accurate. Microalbuminuria was clearly the strongest predictor of all individual outcomes.

What an acronym! MOD stands for major outcomes of diabetes, which is far less posh than the vernacular predecessor, mod, which means vanguard in style. But I digress -- praise be microalbuminuria for being crowned the best single predictor of MOD. If you happen to linger with curiosity to learn more about microalbuminuria, indulge in the deep ocean of Wikipedia.