Insulin resistance/beta-cell function and serum ferritin level in non-diabetic patients with hepatitis C virus infection.
OBJECTIVE
Since impaired glucose tolerance and iron overload are frequently demonstrated in hepatitis C virus (HCV)-related liver diseases, in this study we investigated insulin resistance, pancreatic beta-cell function, i.e., insulin secretion, and serum ferritin levels in patients with HCV infection, especially non-diabetic patients.


METHODS
Homeostasis model assessments for insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) and beta-cell function (HOMA-beta) were performed in 92 HCV-infected patients.


RESULTS
The levels of plasma immunoreactive insulin (IRI), HOMA-IR, and HOMA-beta were significantly correlated with fasting plasma glucose (FPG) levels. Among the 86 non-diabetics (with an FPG of <126 mg/dl), IRI, HOMA-IR, and HOMA-beta were significantly higher in patients with liver cirrhosis than in patients with persistently normal alanine aminotransferase levels. The IRI and HOMA-IR values, but not the HOMA-beta values, were correlated with both serum transaminase and ferritin levels in the 65 non-diabetic chronic hepatitis patients.


CONCLUSIONS
Insulin resistance was connected with impaired glucose tolerance and the severity of liver diseases in non-diabetic patients with HCV infection. Iron overload may be responsible for insulin resistance, or vice versa. Pancreatic beta-cell function was unrelated to the patients' serum ferritin levels.
Furutani
Masanori
M
Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kyoto, Japan.
Nakashima
Toshiaki
T
Sumida
Yoshio
Y
Hirohama
Akihisa
A
Yoh
Takaharu
T
Kakisaka
Yuko
Y
Mitsuyoshi
Hironori
H
Senmaru
Hiroshi
H
Okanoue
Takeshi
T
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000410:Alanine Transaminase / Q000097:blood; D001786:Blood Glucose; D005215:Fasting; D005260:Female; D005293:Ferritins / Q000097:blood*; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000097:blood*; D006706:Homeostasis / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D007328:Insulin / Q000097:blood; D007333:Insulin Resistance; D007515:Islets of Langerhans / Q000378:metabolism*; D008103:Liver Cirrhosis / Q000097:blood; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged
D001786:Blood Glucose; D007328:Insulin; D005293:Ferritins; D000410:Alanine Transaminase