Non-invasive diagnosis of steatosis, inflammatory changes and liver fibrosis in patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver diseases. Pilot study

Abstract

IntroductionNonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is one of the most common causes of abnormal liver enzymes in adult patients consulted by hepatologists. Due to the high prevalence of this disease, most often associated with obesity, it is necessary to assess the risk of NAFLD, monitoring the progression of the disease and the effectiveness of treatment.Material and methodsWe evaluated the intensity of steatosis, inflammatory activity and fibrosis in 36 patients with NAFLD (fatty liver in abdominal ultrasound examination), using non-invasive tests: SteatoTest, ActiTest and FibroTest. We compared the prevalence of metabolic disorders and hypertension between women and men.ResultsThere were no significant differences in analysed parameters of metabolic disorders between women and men. In both studied groups, the intensity of steatosis and inflammatory changes was similar. However, in the male group, the intensity of liver fibrosis was higher.ConclusionsThe tests helped to detect advanced liver fibrosis in patients who were diagnosed with liver steatosis in ultrasound examination. Non-invasive diagnostics of liver injury may be useful in screening to select groups of patients requiring liver biopsy, as well as in monitoring the course of the disease and assessment of the treatment effectiveness. Early detection of liver disease may improve the prognosis of these patients.

Risk Predictors of Advanced Fibrosis in Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease

“…In our study, the prevalence of male patients (73.8%) was found among patients diagnosed with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, a result similar to that reported by Camhi et al [ 14 ] and most studies in the literature. While in our study, a higher number of male patients with NAFLD was recorded in the whole group (regardless of the degree of fibrosis), there were no statistically significant differences between male and female patients reported in the subset of patients with severe steatosis (S3) and significant fibrosis (F2, F3, and F4) compared to Ciecko-Michalska [ 15 ], who reported a significantly higher prevalence of advanced fibrosis in male patients compared to female patients.…”

KIR2DL2/S2 and KIR2DS5 in alcoholic cirrhotic patients undergoing liver transplantation

“…Alcoholism is a major socio-economic and medical problem worldwide, and a major risk factor for chronic liver disease, which includes 2 Arch Med Sci fatty liver, alcoholic hepatitis, fibrosis, cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma [1][2][3][4][5][6]. Alcoholic cirrhosis (AC) is the most common indication for liver transplantation (LT), which accounts for approximately 33% of all primary transplants in Europe [7][8][9][10][11].…”

Twelve Month Kinetics of Circulating Fibrosis-Linked Micrornas (Mir-21, Mir-29, Mir-30, and Mir-133a) and the Relationship With Extracellular Matrix Fibrosis in Dilated Cardiomyopathy

“…It should be noted that we applied invasive techniques for the assessment of ECM fibrosis. If we had used non-invasive methods of fibrosis evaluation such as cardiac magnetic resonance imaging, we might have observed somewhat different results [21]. Although repeat cardiac biopsies are rarely performed, Mlejnek et al have recently provided data that such an approach may be safe and justified [22].…”