Evaluation of Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease Using Ultrasonography and Its Correlation with Metabolic Parameters

Background: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, or NAFLD (also known as fatty liver disease or NAFLD), is the most prevalent chronic liver disease in the world and is closely linked with obesity, insulin resistance, dyslipidemia and other factors of metabolic syndrome. Early diagnosis of NAFLD is crucial to avoid cirrhosis and development of hepatocellular carcinoma. In many clinical situations, the imaging modality ultrasonography is widely available, non-invasive and low cost options for detection and grading of hepatic steatosis. The current study was conducted to assess NAFLD by ultrasonography and check its correlation with metabolic parameters. Material and Methods: A cross sectional observational study was done at hospital using 340 subjects above 18 years of age who were undergoing abdominal ultrasonography. Demographic, anthropometric, biochemical and ultrasonographic data was taken. The diagnosis of NAFLD and grade of severity were made based on the accepted ultrasonography criteria. The metabolic parameters evaluated were body mass index (BMI), fasting blood glucose (FBG), lipid profile, alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) levels. Results: Among the 340 participants, 198 individuals were diagnosed with NAFLD, yielding an overall prevalence of 58.2%. Grade I steatosis was the most common ultrasonographic finding (47.5%), followed by Grade II (34.3%) and Grade III (18.2%). Participants with NAFLD had significantly higher BMI (29.8 ± 4.2 vs. 24.1 ± 3.6 kg/m²), fasting blood glucose (118.4 ± 29.6 vs. 93.7 ± 18.2 mg/dL), total cholesterol (213.5 ± 39.8 vs. 181.2 ± 30.5 mg/dL), triglycerides (191.8 ± 61.4 vs. 124.7 ± 43.1 mg/dL), LDL cholesterol (136.4 ± 32.1 vs. 112.8 ± 27.5 mg/dL), ALT (54.6 ± 20.4 vs. 29.5 ± 11.2 U/L), and AST levels (42.1 ± 16.8 vs. 25.8 ± 9.5 U/L) compared with participants without NAFLD (p<0.001 for all).  Conclusion: NAFLD was highly prevalent in the study population and demonstrated strong associations with obesity, impaired glucose metabolism, dyslipidemia, and elevated liver enzymes. The severity of hepatic steatosis increased in parallel with worsening metabolic abnormalities.

Keywords: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease; Ultrasonography; Metabolic syndrome; Body mass index; Dyslipidemia; Hepatic steatosis.