[Clinical characteristics of health screen examinees with nonalcoholic fatty liver and normal liver function test].
OBJECTIVE
Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is known to be closely associated with various metabolic abnormalities including metabolic syndrome. However, there are few data available on the association of metabolic syndrome with the sonographically fatty liver and normal range of liver function test. The purposes of this study were to find the incidence of ultrasonographic fatty liver with normal range of liver function test and to evaluate the association with metabolic syndrome in apparently healthy Korean adults.


METHODS
We examined 538 men and women, aged 30-80 years, who participated in a health screening test. Among the people with normal ALT level, we compared clinical characteristics and prevalence of metabolic disorders according to the presence of nonalcoholic sonographyally fatty liver, and then they were subdivided into upper normal range and lower normal range of ALT level.


RESULTS
Compared to the people without sonographic fatty liver, people with sonographic fatty liver and normal range of ALT level had odds ratios for metabolic syndrome of 4.53, insulin resistance 4.83, hypertension 2.69, dyslipidemia 6.90, and obesity 5.39, respectively. Furthermore, the prevalence of metabolic syndromes and other metabolic disorders were increased in both sonographically fatty liver group or ultrasonographically normal liver group with upper normal range of ALT level compared with lower normal ALT level (p<0.01).


CONCLUSIONS
The nonalcoholic sonographically fatty liver was strongly associated with metabolic syndrome and common metabolic abnormalities even with normal liver function test.
Lee
So Young
SY
Departments of Internal Medicine, Bundang CHA Hospital, College of Medicine, Pochon CHA University, Seongnam, Korea.
Kim
Soo Kyung
SK
Kwon
Chang-Il
CI
Kim
Moon Jong
MJ
Kang
Myung Seo
MS
Ko
Kwang Hyun
KH
Hong
Sung Pyo
SP
Hwang
Seong Gyu
SG
Park
Pil Won
PW
Rim
Kyu Sung
KS
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000410:Alanine Transaminase / Q000032:analysis; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D005234:Fatty Liver / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007333:Insulin Resistance; D008111:Liver Function Tests; D008297:Male; D024821:Metabolic Syndrome / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D008875:Middle Aged; D016017:Odds Ratio; D012372:ROC Curve; D012307:Risk Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014463:Ultrasonography
D000410:Alanine Transaminase