Computed tomography in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease: a useful tool for hepatosteatosis assessment?
The value and/or limitations of computed tomography (CT) in assessment of hepatosteatosis are not well studied in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). We prospectively evaluated the accuracy of CT in assessing the amount of hepatosteatosis in NAFLD patients and the impact of demographic and histopathologic variables on CT images. Forty patients with biopsy-proven NAFLD were eligible. Of these, 10 exhibited hepatic iron overload. Liver and spleen attenuation measurements were obtained and spleen-minus-liver attenuation difference (DeltaS-LA) was calculated. A good correlation between DeltaS-LA and pathological hepatosteatosis was observed (r = 0.837, P < 0.0001). Liver iron overload did not affect this correlation, although the mean DeltaS-LA was significantly lower in patients with iron overload. No correlation was detected between DeltaS-LA and hepatic inflammation, fibrosis, or body mass index. We conclude that DeltaS-LA derived from CT may be a useful tool for predicting the amount of hepatosteatosis in NAFLD patients as it is not affected by various individual factors.
Duman
Deniz Güney
DG
Subdivision of Gastroenterology, School of Medicine, Marmara University, Istanbul 81060, Turkey. drdenizduman@yahoo.com
Celikel
Cigdem
C
Tüney
Davut
D
Imeryüz
Nese
N
Avsar
Erol
E
Tözün
Nurdan
N
D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D015992:Body Mass Index; D005234:Fatty Liver / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008111:Liver Function Tests; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013154:Spleen / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed