Introduction: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is an obesity-associated health problem that causes other liver diseases for the patient. Four anthropometric indices: body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) and waist-to-height ratio (WHtR) were analyzed as NAFLD predictors in the present study.Methods: From the total number of individuals who referred to the PERSIAN Guilan Cohort study (PGCS) located in the north of Iran during the period of study, a total of 960 people were enrolled in the present study. NAFLD was diagnosed using through an abdominal ultrasound exam. Height, weight, WC, BMI, WHR and WHtR were later calculated. Chi-square, ANOVA and logistic regression analyses were used to analyze the risk factors.Results: Out of the 960 individuals who were enrolled in the study, 597 (62.2%) were male and 363 (37.8%) were female (with an average age of 47.21 ± 7.29 years). There was a significant relationship between weight and NAFLD (P<0.001). There was also a significant relationship between BMI (OR= 8.41; 95% CI = 5.59–12.75), WC (OR= 2.67; 95% CI = 2.05–3.48), WHR (OR= 3.84; 95% CI = 2.26–6.52), WHtR (OR= 28.53; 95% CI = 6.94–117.31) and NAFLD (P<0.001). The results of the logistic regression analysis showed that WHtR, BMI and WC were effective predictors for the risk of NAFLD while WHtR played a more important role in the prediction of NAFLD.Conclusion: Anthropometric indices, especially WHtR, as a simple screening tool, seem to be an important criterion for the detection of NAFLD.

Background: Early diagnosis of hepatic lesions can result in more successful treatment. Objectives: The present study aimed to diagnose hepatic space-occupying lesions by sonography in Guilan Cohort Center participants. Methods: In this cross-sectional prospective epidemiological research studies of Iranian adults (PERSIAN) Guilan cohort study (Sowme'eh Sara, Guilan, Iran) conducted in 2014 - 2017, the sample included 960 individuals of both genders, aged 35 - 60 years. A radiologist examined all individuals with sonography to determine hepatic space-occupying lesions. Demographical and clinical characteristics were recorded via a questionnaire. Data analysis was performed using SPSS software (version 16). Results: Only 2.3% of the patients were diagnosed with hepatic lesions such as hemangioma, hepatic cysts, and other lesions with frequencies of 1.1%, 0.8%, and 0.4%, respectively. Also, there was a significant relationship between gender and the presence of hepatic lesions (P < 0.05). The frequencies of hepatic lesions were 1.7% and 3.6% in men and women and 1.6%, 2.5%, and 4.4% in the age groups of 35 - 45, 45 - 55, and over 55 years, respectively. Conclusions: Hemangioma was the most common hepatic lesion diagnosed in ultrasonography examinations. Moreover, the only factor influencing the frequency of hepatic lesions was gender, which was found twice more in women than in men.

Background: Determining the change in the size, structure and volume of the gallbladder by Ultrasound as a diagnostic method is clinically important due to possibility of stone formation in certain diseases and physiological conditions, especially in susceptible people who have a large gallbladder volume. Therefore, this study was carried out by examining the volume of the gallbladder with ultrasound and its association with patients’ demographic data in the Guilan cohort population. Methods: In this cross-sectional study total number of 950 patients aged 35-60 years participated to determine the volume of the gallbladder by a radiologist based on the ultrasound method. Demographic data were collected by questioner according to the ultrasound was performed after fasting for at least 12 hours. Results: The results showed that there was a statistically significant association between marriage and gender with the presence or absence of lesions in the studied patients (P<0.05). Also, there was a statistically significant relationship between BMI, sex, marriage, smoking, and alcohol consumption with the average volume of the gallbladder in the studied patients (P<0.05). There was no significant association between the presence or absence of a lesion and the average volume of the gallbladder in the patients (P>0.05). Conclusion: According to our results, the volume of the gallbladder is greater in obese men than in women. Also, the volume of the gallbladder increases with age, alcohol consumption, and smoking.