Primary Outcome Measures:
- CRP [ Time Frame: 4 weeks ] [ Designated as safety issue: No ]
Secondary Outcome Measures:
- Insulin resistance [ Time Frame: 4 weeks ] [ Designated as safety issue: No ]
- Muscle adiposity [ Time Frame: 4 weeks ] [ Designated as safety issue: No ]
- High molecular weight adiponectin [ Time Frame: 4 weeks ] [ Designated as safety issue: No ]
- resistin [ Time Frame: 4 weeks ] [ Designated as safety issue: No ]
- leptin [ Time Frame: 4 weeks ] [ Designated as safety issue: No ]
- TNF-R1 [ Time Frame: 4 weeks ] [ Designated as safety issue: No ]
- TNF-R2 [ Time Frame: 4 weeks ] [ Designated as safety issue: No ]
- weight [ Time Frame: 4 weeks ] [ Designated as safety issue: No ]
- WBC [ Time Frame: 4 weeks ] [ Designated as safety issue: Yes ]
- Lipids [ Time Frame: 4 weeks ] [ Designated as safety issue: No ]
- IL-6 [ Time Frame: 4 weeks ] [ Designated as safety issue: No ]
- Fibrinogen [ Time Frame: 4 weeks ] [ Designated as safety issue: No ]
- adiponectin [ Time Frame: 4 weeks ] [ Designated as safety issue: No ]
Metabolic syndrome is an increasingly prevalent disorder associated with elevated risks of type II DM (diabetes mellitus) and cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. A subclinical inflammatory state is thought to contribute to the pathophysiology of metabolic syndrome, insulin resistance, and coronary artery disease (CAD). TNF-alpha is an inflammatory cytokine that is increased in a spectrum of inflammatory diseases as well as in insulin resistance. TNF-alpha antagonists are clinically effective in the inflammation of arthritides, but have not been examined in the metabolic syndrome population. Moreover, data suggests that adiponectin, a recently discovered adipocytokine that may protect against the development of insulin resistance and atherosclerosis, may be downregulated by TNF-alpha. We propose a study in which we administer etanercept, a TNF-alpha receptor fusion protein, to subjects with metabolic syndrome to examine its effect on inflammatory markers,CRP, adiponectin and insulin resistance. This would be the first study to investigate the anti-inflammatory properties and insulin sensitizing potential of TNF-alpha blockade on the growing population with metabolic syndrome.