Clinical relevance of reporting fatty liver on ultrasound in asymptomatic patients during routine health checkups

OBJECTIVE: Ultrasonography is an efficient technique for detecting fatty liver. Its sensitivity and specificity in detecting moderate to severe fatty liver are comparable to those of histology. Fatty liver is associated with abnormal lipid and lipoprotein metabolism and insulin resistance, metabolic syndrome, cardiovascular/renal disease, type 2 diabetes, and other conditions. This study was performed to compare the serum lipid profiles and serum glutamic pyruvic transaminase (GPT), glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase (GOT), and glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) levels in patients diagnosed with fatty liver on ultrasonography versus controls without fatty liver and evaluate the clinical relevance of an ultrasound diagnosis of fatty liver in routine health checkups. METHODS: This hospital-based cross-sectional study included 390 patients who underwent health checkups; 226 were diagnosed with fatty liver (cases) and 164 were not (controls). The lipid profile, serum GOT and GPT levels, and HbA1c level were compared between the cases and controls. RESULTS: The cases had considerably higher levels of lipids, liver enzymes (serum GOT and GPT), and HbA1c than controls. CONCLUSION: Ultrasonography is a noninvasive simple tool for early detection of fatty liver in asymptomatic patients and can help clinicians achieve early detection of metabolic syndrome.