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Prevalence and associated metabolic factors of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease in the general population from 2009 to 2010 in Japan: a multicenter large retrospective study

  • Original Article—Liver, Pancreas, and Biliary Tract
  • Published:
Journal of Gastroenterology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Background

The prevalence of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has been increasing. This study aimed to assess the recent prevalence of NAFLD and to predict the prevalence of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) with liver fibrosis using established scoring systems in the general population.

Methods

A cross-sectional study was conducted among 8352 subjects who received health checkups from 2009 to 2010 in three health centers in Japan. Subjects with an intake over 20 g of alcohol/day or with other chronic liver diseases were excluded. Fatty liver was detected by ultrasonography. The probability of NASH with advanced fibrosis was calculated according to the body mass index, age, ALT, and triglyceride (BAAT) and FIB-4 (based on age, aspartate aminotransferase and alanine aminotransferase levels, and platelet counts) indices.

Results

A total of 5075 subjects were enrolled. The overall prevalence of NAFLD was 29.7%. There was a significant threefold difference in the mean prevalence between males (41.0%) and females (17.7%). This prevalence showed a linear increase with body mass index, triglycerides, and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol regardless of threshold values, even without obesity. The estimated prevalence of NASH according to the BAAT index ≥3 was 2.7%, and according to the FIB-4 index it was 1.9%.

Conclusions

The prevalence of NAFLD has increased in the general population, especially in males. There is a linear relationship between the prevalence of NAFLD and various metabolic parameters, even in nonobese subjects. The prevalence of NASH with advanced fibrosis is estimated to be considerably high in subjects with NAFLD.

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Abbreviations

Ht:

Body height

BW:

Body weight

BMI:

Body mass index

AST:

Aspartate aminotransferase

ALT:

Alanine aminotransferase

AAR:

AST/ALT ratio

ALP:

Alkaline phosphatase

GGT:

Gamma-glutamyl transferase

ChE:

Cholinesterase

FPG:

Fasting plasma glucose

Hb:

Hemoglobin

PLT:

Platelet

TC:

Total cholesterol

TG:

Triglyceride

HDL-C:

High-density lipoprotein cholesterol

LDL-C:

Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank Professor Kyuichi Tanikawa (International Institute for Liver Research) for excellent advice, Yukie Watanabe, Chieko Ogawa, Natsumi Izumi, Hisae Ariki, Ikuko Hirotaki, Reiko Sonoda, and all the co-medical staff at Saga Medical School Hospital, Eguchi Hospital, Kochi Medical School, and Kawamura Clinic for assistance, and members of the Japan Study Group of Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (JSG-NAFLD) for excellent advice. This work was supported by a Grant-in-Aid from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology of Japan (2010) (#22590741 to Y.E. and #20590785 to M.O.).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of General Medicine, Saga Medical School, Saga, Japan

    Yuichiro Eguchi

  2. Department of Medicine and Molecular Sciences, Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Hiroshima University, Hiroshima, Japan

    Hideyuki Hyogo & Kazuaki Chayama

  3. Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Kochi Medical School, Kohasu, Oko-cho, Nankoku, Kochi, 783-8505, Japan

    Masafumi Ono & Toshiji Saibara

  4. Department of Internal Medicine, Saga Medical School, Saga, Japan

    Toshihiko Mizuta & Kazuma Fujimoto

  5. Clinical Gastroenterology, Eguchi Hospital, Saga, Japan

    Naofumi Ono

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  1. Yuichiro Eguchi
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  2. Hideyuki Hyogo
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Correspondence to Masafumi Ono.

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Eguchi, Y., Hyogo, H., Ono, M. et al. Prevalence and associated metabolic factors of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease in the general population from 2009 to 2010 in Japan: a multicenter large retrospective study. J Gastroenterol 47, 586–595 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00535-012-0533-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00535-012-0533-z

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