Predictors of Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease in Type 2 Diabetes

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is com-mon in patients with type 2 diabetes and its diagno-sis in clinics is based on ultrasonography. The aim of this study is to examine the role of some clinical and laboratory variables in predicting NAFLD diag-nosed by ultrasonography in patients with Type 2 diabetes. The study was performed on 76 consecutive alcohol-negative and hepatitis B and C virus-negative patients, attending an endocrine clinic; all of them had undergone a complete clinical and biochemical work up, including demographic and anthropometric factors, lipid profiles, fasting plasma glucose, glycosilated hemoglobin (HbA1c), liver transaminases and alkaline phosphatase. Using ultrasonography, patients were divided into two groups, one with and the other without NAFLD. A logistic regression model was developed in stepwise manner to evaluate predictors of NAFLD. Average age was 60±9 years. Forty-nine (64.5%) patients were female. Sixty-three patients (82.9%) had ultrasonography-diagnosed NAFLD. Average body mass index (BMI) was higher in NAFLD patients (29.4±4.4 kg/m2 vs. 24.8±3.8 kg/m2, P<0.05). Among age, gender, FPG, duration of diabe-tes, triglycerides, waist circumference and BMI, the only independent factor associated with ultrasound-diagnosed NAFLD was BMI [adjusted odds ratio for 25≤BMI<30 kg/m2: 7.8 (95% CI: 1.9 to 32.4); BMI ≥30 kg/m2: 24 (95% CI: 2.6 to 223), P<0.001]. The findings demonstrate that BMI per se can be considered as an independent predictor of NAFLD in patients with type 2 diabetes.