Background and aims Prevalence of MS is higher in patients with SLE than in the general population (16%–32%). Inflammatory activity and steroids have been associated with the SM. 25% of deaths from SLE have a cardiovascular (CV) origin and are associated with dyslipidemia, elevated BMI, insulin resistance and hypertension.

Objective To determine the prevalence of MS in Mexicans patients with SLE and its association with disease characteristics and inflammatory markers.

Methods Cross-sectional study of patients with SLE. Demographics, coronary risk, disease activity and inflammatory markers were studied. The diagnosis of MS was established with the NHLBI/AHA criteria. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS 20.0 software and a P value<0.05 was considered significant.

Results 126 patients with SLE, 107 women (84%) and 19 men (15%), age 41±13 years old and disease duration 9±7 years. The prevalence of MS was 33.3%. No association was found with age, education level, smoking or steroid use in patients with MS. In multivariate analysis only elevated erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) had a statistical significance (p=0.012). Positive association was found between higher values of ESR and hypertriglyceridemia (p=0.0002), body mass index (p=0.0043) and lower levels of HDL and C3 (p=0.0152).

Conclusions The prevalence of MS in our population (33%) was higher than reported in the SLICC registry (15%). The association of metabolic and inflammatory characteristics increases cardiovascular risk by a proinflamatory state. The results suggest the need for early diagnosis and treatment of MS to reduce cardiovascular comorbidity in patients with SLE.