An Increasing Mexican Population with Metabolic Syndrome-Emerging Role of Hybrid SPECT/CT and PET/CT in Cardiovascular Disease Detection

Metabolic syndrome represents a growing burden in the Mexican population with an increasing presence as evidenced by the most recent epidemiological data, showing a prevalence of 49.8 % in 2006. The cardiovascular hazard of metabolic syndrome has been proven in numerous occasions; these patients present an increased risk of cardiovascular dis- ease not only because of epicardial coronary occlusion but also from microvascular disease secondary to endothelial dysfunction. Myocardial perfusion imaging using both single-photon emission computed tomography and positron emission tomography can be effectively used for the evaluation of established coronary artery disease as well as in the assessment of high-risk asymptomatic pa- tients. In this review, we briefly discuss the role of myo- cardial perfusion imaging studies and its current and po- tential applications for patients with metabolic syndrome.