Elevated Biochemical Parameters among Individuals with Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD) in Nepal = Elevated Biochemical Parameters among Individuals with Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD) in Nepal

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

Aims: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a spectrum of disease ranging from simple steatosis, through steatohepatitis to fibrosis and ultimately cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. Globally, NAFLD is being increasingly recognized as a major health burden. In this study, we aimed to investigate the patients with NAFLD and compare various biochemical parameters among patients with and without NAFLD at a tertiary care teaching hospital of Kathmandu, Nepal.
Methods: We conducted a hospital based cross sectional study among 143 (73 NAFLD and 70 control) patients visiting a tertiary care teaching hospital of Nepal for their annual medical checkup. Diagnosis of NAFLD was made by abdominal ultrasonography and liver parameters. Analysis of blood chemistry parameters (lipid profile, liver profile and hematology parameters) in the patients with and without NAFLD (control) was carried out by standard methods. Statistical analysis and comparison of the parameters was done by SPSS version 21.0 and data with p value less than 0.05 was considered significant.
Results: Among 73 cases diagnosed as NAFLD, ultrasonography revealed 54.7% of the cases as grade I NAFLD, 32.8% as grade II and remaining 12.5% as grade III NAFLD. Mean age for the patient with NAFLD was 41.6 years with male predominance (38, 52.0%). Among the NAFLD cases, 33(45.2%) patients had normal liver profile in which 18(54.5%) of them had abnormal lipid profile. Subsequently, we observed significantly (p<0.001) high levels of fasting blood glucose, serum uric acid, total cholesterol, triglycerides, LDL cholesterol, serum transaminases (AST-ALT) and alkaline phosphatase among NAFLD group of patients. However, no significant difference was noted on blood levels of urea, creatinine and other hematological parameters.
Conclusions: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease was found associated with abnormal biochemical parameters. Timely detection of the cases and establishment of appropriate control measures will be helpful in modifying the disease course and delaying complications.