Korean J Fam Pract.  2021 Feb;11(1):39-45. 10.21215/kjfp.2021.11.1.39.

Relationship between Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease and High Sensitivity C-Reactive Protein in Healthy Adults

• Choi Y
• Oh JE
• Lee J
• Shin HS
• Cho YJ
• Kim SH
• Joe H
• Yoo BW
• Hong SH
• Cho CY
• Son DY
• Shin KS

• KMID: 2513126
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.21215/kjfp.2021.11.1.39

Abstract

Background
Recent studies have shown that nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is associated with higher levels of high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), a predictor of increased risk of developing cardiovascular disease. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between NAFLD and hs-CRP in healthy adults.
Methods
Among 13,709 participants aged 20 years and over who underwent a health check-up between March 2016 and February 2017 at a health promotion center, we studied 849 participants without underlying medical conditions, excessive alcohol consumption, or serum hs-CRP level >5. The subjects were divided into three groups according to the tertiles of serum hs-CRP levels.
Results
Compared with control group, the mean level of serum hs-CRP was higher in the NAFLD group (0.60 and 1.11 mg/L, respectively, P-value <0.001). The proportion of participants with NAFLD in the first, second, and third tertiles was 5.8%, 22.7%, and 42.9%, respectively (P-value<0.001). When compared with the lowest tertile group, the adjusted odds ratios for NAFLD in the middle and highest tertile groups were 2.557 (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.317–4.965) and 2.771 (95% CI, 1.420–5.408), respectively.
Conclusion
We found that NAFLD was significantly related to serum hs-CRP in healthy adults. This result was still significant after adjusting for age, sex, body mass index, waist circumference, fasting blood glucose, systolic and diastolic blood pressures, and triglyceride and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels.

Keyword

Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease; High Sensitivity C-Reactive Protein; Cardiovascular Disease; Risk Factors