title: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease proven by transient elastography in hemodialysis patients: is it a new risk factor for adverse cardiovascular events?
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are the leading cause of mortality in hemodialysis (HD) patients. Recently, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has been recognized as a new risk factor for adverse CVD events in the general population. Our aim was to analyze the incidence of NAFLD in HD patients by using transient elastography and to analyze whether the presence of NAFLD is associated with a higher CVD risk in HD patients.
  
  
  METHODS
  The subjects were 72 HD patients and 50 sex- and age-matched controls.
  
  
  RESULTS
  NAFLD was found in 52.8% of HD patients. HD patients with NAFLD showed more carotid atherosclerosis and more adverse CVD events than HD patients without NAFLD and control subjects.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We showed for the first time that HD patients have a high prevalence of NAFLD. HD patients with NAFLD show an advanced carotid atherosclerosis. Detection of NAFLD by transient elastography should alert to the existence of an increased cardiovascular risk in HD patients.
authors.affiliation: Division of Internal Medicine, Department of Nephrology and Dialysis, University Hospital Center Rijeka, Rijeka, Croatia.
authors.forename: Ivana
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Mikolasevic
authors.forename: Lidija
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Orlic
authors.forename: Sandra
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Milic
authors.forename: Luka
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zaputovic
authors.forename: Vesna
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Lukenda
authors.forename: Sanjin
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Racki
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D050197:Atherosclerosis / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology; D059168:Carotid Intima-Media Thickness; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D054459:Elasticity Imaging Techniques; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D065626:Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology*; D058226:Plaque, Atherosclerotic / Q000473:pathology; D015995:Prevalence; D006435:Renal Dialysis / Q000009:adverse effects*; D012307:Risk Factors; D013997:Time Factors