title: Assessment of Vitamin D status in a group of Egyptian children with non alcoholic fatty liver disease (multicenter study).
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is one of the health problems with great burden on the liver that may end with liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. The aim of this work was to assess serum vitamin D level in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease children.
  
  
  METHODS
  This cross sectional case control study involved 47 patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease selected while recruiting the pediatric hepatology clinics. Their ages ranged from 5-15 years and were compared with 23 healthy age and sex matched children. All involved patients were subjected to careful history taking, clinical examination and for patients and control, anthropometric measures for body mass index (BMI) calculation (plotted on WHO percentile growth charts), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), gamma glutamyl transferase (GGT), bilirubin (total and direct), serum albumin, creatinine, triglycerides, cholesterol, high density lipoprotein (HDL),low density lipoprotein (LDL), fasting blood glucose and fasting insulin (for calculation of insulin resistance), C reactive protein and serum vitamin D all were assayed. NAFLD was detected by ultrasonography and graded as absent, mild, moderate and severe.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Ninety-three percent of NAFLD patients were obese. Significant differences were found between patients and control regarding AST, ALT, ALP, GGT, total and direct bilirubin, serum albumin, creatinine, triglycerides, cholesterol, HDL, fasting blood glucose, fasting insulin, the homeostatic model assessment for insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) and serum vitamin D levels. Significant negative correlation was found between serum vitamin D level and grades of steatosis.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Serum vitamin D level decreases in children with NAFLD. This low serum vitamin D level is associated with higher stages of steatosis but not with BMI.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, National Hepatology and Tropical Medicine Institute, Cairo, Egypt.
authors.forename: Amal
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mohamed Ahmed
authors.affiliation: Pediatric Department, El Sahel teaching hospital, Cairo, Egypt.
authors.forename: Maha
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Abdel Ghany
authors.affiliation: Pediatric Department, Minia University, El Minya, Egypt.
authors.forename: Gehan Lotfy
authors.initials: GL
authors.lastname: Abdel Hakeem
authors.affiliation: Public health Department, Faculty of Medicine, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt.
authors.forename: Aya
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kamal
authors.affiliation: Microbiology and Immunology Department, Faculty of Pharmacy, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt.
authors.forename: Rania
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Khattab
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Nutrition, Faculty of Applied Medical Science, King Abdul-Aziz University, Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Asmaa
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Abdalla
authors.affiliation: Pediatric Department, Minia University, El Minya, Egypt.
authors.forename: Laila El Morsi
authors.initials: Lel M
authors.lastname: Abou El Fotoh
authors.affiliation: Pediatric Department, Minia University, El Minya, Egypt.
authors.forename: Abdel Azeem
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: El Mazary
authors.affiliation: Pediatric Department, Minia University, El Minya, Egypt.
authors.forename: Madiha Abdalla
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Sayed
authors.affiliation: Pediatric Department, Minia University, El Minya, Egypt.
authors.forename: Ashraf Mohamed
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Abdel Fadil
keywords: Children; Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease; Vitamin D