BMI, disease duration among predictors of NAFLD in Crohn’s patients in China
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BMI, serum transaminase, pre-albumin levels and disease duration may predict the development of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease in patients with Crohn’s disease, according to research published in BMC Gastroenterology.
“In recent years, mounting data suggest there is an increase in prevalence of NAFLD in IBD population compared with community-based controls,” Qijin Hong, of the division of gastroenterology and hepatology at the Shanghai Institute of Digestive Disease, and colleagues wrote. “However, as the discrepancies have been recognized between eastern and western population regarding the phenotypes and natural history of IBD, and NAFLD is largely asymptomatic until end-stage complications occur, early identification and intervention are pivotal in the management of this co-exist disease.”
Seeking to investigate the prevalence, clinical characteristics and potential indicators for co-existing CD and NAFLD, Hong and colleagues evaluated 340 Chinese patients with CD at Shanghai Renji Hospital between June 2018 and May 2020. Using magnetic resonance proton density fat fraction maps, researchers diagnosed 83 of those patients with NAFLD.
According to study results, patients with NAFLD had longer disease duration (4 years vs. 2 years; P = 0.01), higher BMI (22.3±4.5 kg/m2 vs. 19.6±2.7 kg/m2; P < 0.01) and elevated liver function tests. While long-term use (> 54 weeks) of anti-tumor necrosis factor-alpha did not affect the risk for NAFLD between groups, BMI (OR = 2.387; 95% CI, 1.694-3.362), alanine aminotransferase (OR = 1.653; 95% CI, 1.133-2.411), aspartate aminotransferase (OR = 0.629; 95% CI, 0.423-0.938), gamma-glutamyl transferase (OR = 1.266; 95% CI, 1.049-1.528), pre-albumin (OR = 1.566; 95% CI, 1.132-2.167) and disease duration served as robust predictors of hepatic steatosis.
“Our data report a comprehensive investigation of prevalence of NAFLD in Chinese population, which is high in chronic CD patients,” Hong and colleagues concluded. “And long-term use of anti TNF-alpha seems to have no effect on the progression of NAFLD in a Chinese population.”
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