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Objective: Recent evidence suggests that C-reactive protein (CRP) may predict development of diabetes in Caucasian populations. We evaluated CRP as a possible risk factor of the development of diabetes and metabolic syndrome in a 6-year study of 515 men and 729 women from the Mexico City Diabetes Study.Research Design and Methods: Baseline CRP, indexes of adiposity, and insulin resistance (homeostasis model assessment [HOMA-IR]) were used to predict development of the metabolic syndrome, defined as including two or more of the following: 1) dyslipidemia (triglyceride >/=2.26 mmol/l or HDL cholesterol 140/90 mmHg or on hypertensive medication); or 3) diabetes (1999 World Health Organization criteria).Results: At baseline, CRP correlated significantly (P < 0.001) with all metabolic indexes in women, but less so in men. After 6 years, 14.2% of men and 16.0% of women developed the metabolic syndrome. Compared with tertile 1, women with CRP in the highest tertile had an increased relative risk of developing the metabolic syndrome by 4.0 (95% CI 2.0-7.9) and diabetes by 5.5 (2.2-13.5); these risks changed minimally after adjusting for BMI or HOMA-IR. The area under receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve for the prediction of the development of the syndrome was 0.684 for CRP, increasing to 0.706 when combined with BMI and to 0.710 for a complex model of CRP, BMI, and HOMA-IR.Conclusions: CRP was not a significant predictor of the development of the metabolic syndrome in men. Our data strongly support the notion that inflammation is important in the pathogenesis of diabetes and metabolic disorders in women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Provides information on a study regarding the effects of thiazolidinedione insulin-sensitizing treatment on total body fat and fat distribution of diabetic patients. Total body fat in underwater weighing; Abdominal fat measured by magnetic resonance imaging; Calculations of intra-abdominal and extra-abdominal adipose tissue and fat volumes.

Presents the authors' response to comments on their article on the relation of C-reactive protein (CRP) with type 2 diabetes. Importance of inflammation to the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes in women; Reason for the inability to find an association between CRP and diabetes risk in men.