["The association of metabolic syndrome (MetS) with cardiovascular diseases (CVD) has not been adequately explored in middle-aged and elderly Chinese. This study aimed to investigate MetS' prevalence and its impact on the CVD incidence in this specific population group.", 'A data set of a community-based prospective cohort study was analyzed. A total of 2300 subjects aged 40-94 years were followed up for the CVD events. MetS defined according to the JCDCG criteria was assessed at baseline, and the middle-aged and elderly groups were classified by the WHO definition.', 'As compared with the middle-aged group, the prevalence of MetS increased by 0.6 times (34.6% vs. 21.3%) and the incidence density of CVD increased by 4.9 times in the elderly group (52.3/1000 person-year vs. 8.9/1000 person-year). Furthermore, the multivariate Cox regression revealed that the risk to CVD incidence was independently related to increased waist circumference in the middle-aged group (HR=2.23, P<0.01) and to elevated blood glucose in the elderly group (HR=1.39, P<0.01).'] Do metabolic disorders increase the risk to incident cardiovascular disease in middle-aged and elderly Chinese?