Thyroid function is associated with non‐alcoholic fatty liver disease in chronic hepatitis B‐infected subjects

Abstract

Thyroid dysfunction is not common in CHB-infected patients, and the prevalence of hypothyroidism in CHB individuals with or without NAFLD is similar. However, increased serum TSH concentration at the normal range is a significant predictor of hepatic steatosis in patients with CHB.

Benefits of Levothyroxine Replacement Therapy on Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease in Subclinical Hypothyroidism Patients

“…A number of studies have provided evidence supporting the role of SCH as an independent risk factor of NAFLD [13–16]. The mechanism underlying the association of SCH and NAFLD may be mediated by the direct regulation of TSH on liver lipid metabolism.…”

“…As stated by Lancet , “The world faces a burden of thyroid disease that has reached epidemic proportions” [12]. Remarkably, a growing body of evidence has led to the hypothesis that SCH is an independent risk factor of NAFLD [13–16]. A cross-sectional study reported that the prevalence of NAFLD in SCH patients was significantly increased compared with that of subjects with euthyroidism (29.9% versus 19.5%, p < 0.001) [13].…”

Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease Is Not Associated with Thyroid Hormone Levels and Hypothyroidism: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

“…Eleven articles were excluded (4 articles had no comparison group, 3 articles did not report a subject of interest, and 4 articles did not report an outcome of interest). Fourteen observational studies (9 cross-sectional studies [14,15,16,17,18,19,20,21,22], 4 case-control studies [23,24,25,26], and 1 cohort study [27]) involving 7,191 NAFLD patients and 30,003 controls were included in the meta-analysis. Table 1 describes the detailed characteristics and quality assessment of the included studies.…”

“…A total of 5 studies [14,15,16,20,27] involving 26,454 participants, 6 studies [14,15,16,20,23,27] involving 27,070 studies, and 9 studies [14,15,16,17,18,20,25,26,27] involving 32,347 participants were included in our meta-analyses for assessing the association between NAFLD and subclinical hypothyroidism, overt hypothyroidism, and overall hypothyroidism, respectively. NAFLD was not associated with subclinical hypothyroidism (pooled OR = 0.63, 95% CI: 0.18-2.20, p = 0.47, I 2 = 97%, p heterogeneity <0.01), overt hypothyroidism (pooled OR = 1.37, 95% CI: 0.78-2.41, p = 0.27, I 2 = 81%, p heterogeneity = 0.08), or overall hypothyroidism (pooled OR = 1.21, 95% CI: 0.91-1.61, p = 0.18, I 2 = 72%, p heterogeneity = 0.02) compared with non-NAFLD controls (Fig.…”

“…A total of 6 studies [15,16,17,19,21,22] involving 6,294 participants, 7 studies [15,16,17,19,21,22,27] involving 24,838 studies, and 9 studies [15,16,17,19,20,21,22,24,27] involving 26,147 participants were included in our meta-analyses for assessing the association between NAFLD and FT 3 , FT 4 , and TSH, respectively. Patients who had NAFLD did not show a significant difference concerning FT 3 (pooled MD = 0.04, 95% CI: -0.11 to 0.19, p = 0.61, I 2 = 96%, p heterogeneity <0.01), FT 4 (pooled MD = -0.27, 95% CI: -0.70 to 0.16, p = 0.22, I 2 = 98%, p heterogeneity <0.01), and TSH (pooled MD = 0.11, 95% CI: -0.03 to 0.24, p = 0.12, I 2 = 88%, p heterogeneity = 0.03) compared with non-NAFLD controls (Fig.…”