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Fatty liver index useful for predicting precancerous colon polyps
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Patients with a high fatty liver index, a noninvasive method used to predict non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, showed a higher risk for colorectal adenomas, according to new research.
Investigators concluded that the fatty liver index may therefore be useful for predicting the presence of colorectal adenomas, which are considered “the GI manifestation of metabolic syndrome.”
“This study has focused on investigating a simple indicator that can help selectively screen out those who have a higher risk of colorectal adenoma, and thus more likely need a colonoscopy,” an investigator said in a video abstract.
Given that NAFLD and colorectal adenomas may share common risk factors for metabolic syndrome, researchers from Seoul, Korea aimed to determine the usefulness of the fatty liver index for predicting colorectal adenomas and screening for colorectal cancer. The fatty liver index “is calculated by using 4 variables: BMI, waist circumference, triglycerides (TGs), and γ-glutamyltransferase (GGT),” they wrote.
The investigators reviewed data on 2,976 consecutive patients aged older than 40 years (64.5% men) who underwent abdominal ultrasonography and colonoscopy as part of their routine check-ups over a 6-year period. Overall, 31.3% had a colorectal adenoma — most often in the upper colon — 23.2% had metabolic syndrome and 50.8% had fatty liver based on their ultrasonography results.
Patients with a BMI greater than 25 kg/m2, those with fatty liver, and those aged older than 60 years showed a higher risk for colorectal adenoma.
Multivariate analysis showed that a fatty liver index higher than 30 was correlated with an increased risk for colorectal adenoma (OR = 1.269; 95% CI, 1.06–1.49; P = 0.008). Among those with a score above 30, 36% had a colorectal adenoma compared with 27% of those with a score below 30.
Patients with a score higher than 30 showed significantly more colorectal adenomas (P < .001) and more advanced colorectal adenomas (P = .042) compared with patients who had a score lower than 30. Further, the investigators found an increasing prevalence of colorectal adenoma with each increasing quartile of fatty liver index (P < .05).
“This is the first study to evaluate the relationship between the fatty liver index and prevalence of colorectal adenomas,” the investigator said in the video abstract. “The present study demonstrated that subjects with high fatty liver index have a higher prevalence of colorectal adenoma. Therefore, high fatty liver index may be of use for predicting colorectal adenoma.” – by Adam Leitenberger
Disclosures: The authors report no relevant financial disclosures.
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