Study of non alcoholic fatty liver disease among non- diabetic hemodialysis patients by transient elastography

Abstract

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the most common cause of chronic liver disease worldwide. It is defined as the accumulation of fat (>5%) in liver cells in the absence of excessive alcohol intake or other causes of liver disease including autoimmune, drug-induced, or viral hepatitis, The histologic spectrum of NAFLD ranges from simple steatosis to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), liver fibrosis, and cirrhosis. Today, it is believed that NAFLD is a hepatic manifestation of metabolic syndrome (MS) and thus is closely related to cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Some observations were reported about haemodialysis patients who develop NAFLD because of shared etiological factors (such as the components of metabolic syndrome) probably have a much faster progression of the atherosclerotic process and development of adverse CVD events than patients without NAFLD. However, the main risk factors responsible for the development of NAFLD are commonly observed in dialysis patients. But, the prevalence of NAFLD in patients undergoing dialysis remains unclear. Moreover, a meta-analysis showed that the CAP has good sensitivity and specificity for detecting hepatic steatosis there have only been limited reports regarding the use of CAP to evaluate hepatic steatosis in hemodialysis patients.