Metabolic syndrome is the cluster that antipsychotic-associated metabolic burden characteristically produces, and naming it helps because it prompts assessment of all its components rather than the lipid panel alone. It is conventionally diagnosed when three or more of the following are present: - increased waist circumference, using population-appropriate thresholds - raised triglycerides, or treatment for them - reduced HDL-C, or treatment for it - raised blood pressure, or treatment for it - raised fasting glucose, or treatment for it Prevalence in people treated for schizophrenia is roughly two to three times that of the general population. It is frequently established within the first year or two of treatment, and often in young adults in whom nobody is looking for it. Waist circumference deserves specific attention because it changes earliest and is measurable in the clinic without a laboratory. It is also frequently the measurement omitted — recording weight alone misses the central redistribution that carries the metabolic risk. For NP certification preparation (United States), items rarely announce the topic in the first sentence. Anchor to objective data, trajectory, and the...