Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease fibrosis score and preclinical vascular damage in morbidly obese patients

Relation between non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and carotid artery intimal media thickness as a surrogate for atherosclerosis: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), characterized by hepatic steatosis without heavy alcohol consumption or other chronic conditions, encompasses a spectrum from non-alcoholic fatty liver to non-alcoholic steatohepatitis leading to cirrhosis. This analysis aimed to investigate the correlation between NAFLD and carotid intimal media thickness (C-IMT), a non-invasive surrogate for atherosclerosis.

METHODOLOGY

Database searches, including PubMed, EMBASE and Cochrane Library, yielded studies up to April 2023. Included were studies exploring the NAFLD-C-IMT relationship in populations aged >18 years. Exclusions comprised non-English papers, those involving animals or pediatric populations and studies lacking control groups.

RESULTS

No statistical significance was noted between mild and moderate NAFLD compared to the control group regarding C-IMT [95% confidence intervals (CI): -0.03, 0.12] and (95% CI: -0.03, 0.21), respectively. There was a statistically significant difference only in the Severe NAFLD group ( P value 0.03). NAFLD with and without metabolic syndrome showed statistically significant differences compared to control regarding C-IMT (95% CI: 0.04, 0.12) and (95% CI: 0.01, 0.07), respectively. Fifty-nine studies were mentioned without classification of NAFLD severity and revealed a high statistically significant difference between NAFLD and controls regarding C-IMT with (95% CI: 0.09, 0.12, P < 0.00001). Stratified analysis according to sex was done in two studies and revealed statistical differences between NAFLD and control regarding C-IMT in both groups.

CONCLUSION

This meta-analysis underscores a significant association between NAFLD and increased C-IMT, emphasizing the importance of assessing C-IMT in NAFLD patients to identify cardiovascular risk and tailor therapeutic interventions for improved patient outcomes.

Liver steatosis and fibrosis markers' association with cardiovascular and renal damage in Japanese adults: the TMM BirThree cohort study

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES

Patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) are at risk for cardiovascular and chronic kidney diseases. Liver steatosis and fibrosis were assessed using the fatty liver index and fibrosis-4 index, respectively. This study aimed to examine the association between these two parameters in patients with atherosclerosis and chronic kidney disease.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The two parameters were calculated for 11,867 adults who participated in the Tohoku Medical Megabank Project Birth and Three-Generation Cohort Study. Intima-media thickness and estimated glomerular filtration rate were also measured. Logistic regression models were used to estimate the odds ratios (OR).

RESULTS

Overall, 4257 (35.9%) and 4733 (39.9%) participants had a higher probability of liver steatosis and fibrosis, respectively. The adjusted OR of higher fatty liver index compared to lower fatty liver index for atherosclerosis and chronic kidney disease were 0.98 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.77-1.24) and 1.79 (95% CI, 1.19-2.69), and those of higher FIB-4 compared to lower FIB-4 were 1.03 (95% CI, 0.82-1.30) and 0.79 (95% CI, 0.52-1.19) for atherosclerosis and chronic kidney disease, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

A higher FLI was associated with CKD independent of other risk factors. Further research is required to identify the causal relationship between liver fat accumulation and CKD.

Liver fibrosis is associated with carotid atherosclerosis in patients with liver biopsy-proven nonalcoholic fatty liver disease

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is related to subclinical atherosclerosis. However, whether the severity of the disease (or which histopathological component) is associated with subclinical atherosclerosis remains controversial. This study aimed to investigate the association between the histopathological severity of NAFLD and carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) in Japanese patients with liver biopsy-proven NAFLD. Maximum-CIMT (max-CIMT) was measured as an index of carotid atherosclerosis in 195 biopsy-proven NAFLD patients. A significant association was observed between the severity of fibrosis (but not steatosis, inflammation, and ballooning) and max-CIMT. Older age, male gender, hypertension, and advanced fibrosis were independently linked to max-CIMT ≥ 1.2 mm. The prevalence of max-CIMT ≥ 1.2 mm was significantly higher in the advanced fibrosis group than in the non-advanced fibrosis group (75.4% versus 44.0%; p < 0.01). Non-invasive liver fibrosis markers and scoring systems, including fibrosis-4 index, NAFLD fibrosis score, hyaluronic acid, and Wisteria floribunda agglutinin positive Mac-2-binding protein, demonstrated that the diagnostic performance for max-CIMT ≥ 1.2 mm was similar to that of biopsy-based fibrosis staging. In conclusion, advanced fibrosis is significantly and independently associated with high-risk CIMT. Non-invasive fibrosis markers and scoring systems could help estimate the risk of atherosclerosis progression in patients with NAFLD.

Minimal Hepatic Encephalopathy is Associated with Increased Cerebral Vascular Resistance. A Transcranial Doppler Ultrasound Study

Minimal hepatic encephalopathy (MHE) is a subclinical complication of liver cirrhosis with a relevant social impact. Thus, there is urgent need to implement easy to use diagnostic tools for the early identification of affected patients. The aim of this study was to investigate cerebral blood flow, systemic hemodynamics as well as endothelial function of cirrhotic patients with MHE, and to verify their change after treatment with rifaximin. Fifty cirrhotic patients with or without MHE and an equal number of healthy controls underwent transcranial Doppler ultrasound (TCD), abdominal Doppler ultrasound (US), and measurement of flow mediated dilation (FMD). In cirrhotic patients diagnosed with MHE receiving rifaximin, the tests were repeated at the end of treatment. Middle (MCA) and posterior (PCA) cerebral artery resistive (RI) and pulsatility (PI) indices were higher in cirrhotic patients than controls, as well as renal and splenic artery RI. Conversely, FMD was reduced. MCA-RI and PI were even higher in cirrhotic patients with MHE compared to those without; a MCA-RI cut-off of 0.65 showed an accuracy of 74% in discriminating the presence of MHE, with 65% sensitivity and 76% specificity. Rifaximin treatment showed no efficacy in the modulation of cerebral vascular flow. In conclusion, cirrhotic patients with MHE have significantly increased cerebral vascular resistances that are not improved by rifaximin treatment. MCA-RI measurement has a good accuracy for the diagnosis of MHE and can be useful for the early identification of this harmful complication of liver cirrhosis.

The clinical significance of insulin resistance in non-diabetic patients with early forms of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease

AIM

To assess the presence of insulin resistance (IR) in non-diabetic patients with early forms of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) - liver steatosis (LS) and steatohepatitis (SH) of mild activity and the influence of IR on the clinical course of these diseases.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

134 patients with NAFLD were examined: 54 with LS and 80 with SH. The control group consisted of 37 healthy donors. Anthropometric parameters (body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC)), clinical and biochemical blood indices, including the blood level of cytokeratin-18 fragments (CK-18), TNF-α and IL-6 cytokines, insulin were evaluated. The HOMA index and the fibrosis index (NAFLD FS) were calculated. Patients were divided into groups: I - with the absence of IR (HOMA-index &lt;2.7), II - with the presence of IR (HOMA-index&gt; 2.7).

RESULTS

Indicators of hepatic injury, inflammation, cholestasis, fibrosis and atherogenic dyslipidemia are higher in patients with LS of group II (with IR) than in group I patients (without IR). BMI, WC, γ-glutamil transpeptidase, CK-18 and fibrosis index are significantly higher in group II patients with SH compared with group I, there is no significant difference in the level of cytolysis, inflammation and dyslipidemia indices. A high incidence of IR in non-diabetic patients with LS (37.0%) and SH (55.0%) was found and the effect of IR on the clinical course of these diseases was revealed.

CONCLUSION

Insulin resistance in non-diabetic patients with NAFLD was detected in SH (55.0%) with higher frequency than in LS (37.0%). In LS, IR is associated with impaired hepatic cell damage, intrahepatic cholestasis, atherogenic dyslipidemia and fibrosis. In SH, IR is combined with reliable growth in indicators of hepatocyte apoptosis, cytokine proinflammatory status and fibrosis. IR determines the progressing course of NAFLD, promoting the transformation of steatosis into steatohepatitis and steatohepatitis into fibrosis and liver cirrhosis.

The association of fatty pancreas with subclinical atherosclerosis in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease

INTRODUCTION

Ectopic fat accumulation in many tissues has been shown to be a risk factor for developing cardiovascular disease. No study to date has investigated whether fatty pancreas plays a role in the development of subclinical atherosclerosis. We aimed to assess the relationship between fatty pancreas and subclinical atherosclerosis in patients with biopsy-proven nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and healthy controls.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

One hundred patients with biopsy-proven NAFLD and 38 healthy controls were included. Transabdominal ultrasonography examination was performed on all the cases with high-resolution ultrasonography (Acuson S3000) using 6 mHz convex probes. The measurements of carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) and carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (cf-PWV) were performed to investigate the relationship between fatty pancreas and atherosclerosis.

RESULTS

The rate of newly diagnosed DM and prediabetes in the NAFLD patients was 6 and 21%, respectively. Most of the patients with NAFLD (97%) were found to have an increased echogenicity of the pancreas at ultrasound examination. Grade of fatty pancreas was correlated positively with cf-PWV levels (P<0.05), whereas no correlation was found with CIMT (P>0.05). The presence of fatty pancreas was associated significantly with higher CIMT and cf-PWV levels (P<0.05). The results for cf-PWV and CIMT did not remain significant after adjustment for confounding factors. Although the levels of cf-PWV and CIMT increased with increasing grade of fatty pancreas, there was no significant association.

CONCLUSION

We have shown for the first time that fatty pancreas is a contributing factor for the development of atherosclerosis in patients with NAFLD. This study also confirms the strong association between NAFLD and fatty pancreas.