Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease in asymptomatic Brazilian adolescents.
OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the prevalence and clinical characteristics of Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) among asymptomatic Brazilian adolescents.


METHODS
Transversal observational study included asymptomatic adolescents with central obesity from private and public schools in Salvador-Bahia, northeastern Brazil. The children answered a questionnaire that included age, gender, race, and medical history, and were submitted to a complete physical exam and abdominal ultrasound. Biochemical exams included: ALT, AST, GGT, C reactive protein (CRP), fasting glucose, insulin, cholesterol and triglycerides. Criteria for NAFLD included: the presence of steatosis in ultrasound and/or high level of ALT, negative or occasional historic of intake of alcohol (<or= 140 g/wk), negative investigation for hepatitis A, B, C, auto-immune hepatitis, Wilson disease and hemochromatosis.


RESULTS
From October, 2005 to October, 2006, the study included 1801 subjects between 11 and 18 years of age and a mean age of 13.7+/-2.0 years. One hundred ninety-nine had central obesity. The prevalence of NAFLD was 2.3%, most of whom were male and white. Insulin resistance (IR) was observed in 22.9% of them and had positive correlations with ALT and GGT (P<0.05). Elevated CRP was observed in 6.9% of the cases; however, it was not associated with WC, IR or liver enzymes.


CONCLUSIONS
The prevalence of NAFLD in Brazilian adolescents was low. The ethnicity may have influence this frequency in the population studied, which had a large proportion of African descendents.
Rocha
Raquel
R
Federal University of Bahia, School of Medicine, Bahia 40110-150, Brazil. raquelrocha2@yahoo.com.br
Cotrim
Helma Pinchemel
HP
Bitencourt
Almir Galvão Vieira
AG
Barbosa
Daniel Batista Valente
DB
Santos
Admeia Souza
AS
Almeida
Alessandro de Moura
Ade M
Cunha
Bruno
B
Guimarães
Isabel
I
D000293:Adolescent; D000410:Alanine Transaminase / Q000097:blood; D001938:Brazil / Q000453:epidemiology; D002648:Child; D005234:Fatty Liver / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007333:Insulin Resistance; D008099:Liver / Q000201:enzymology; D008297:Male; D009765:Obesity / Q000150:complications
D000410:Alanine Transaminase