Table 2.
Comparison of demographic, clinical characteristics, and metabolic factors between children and adolescents with or without liver steatosis and with or without liver fibrosis.
| Variable | Steatosis (n = 44) | Without steatosis (n = 13) | P value | Fibrosis (n = 20) | Without fibrosis (n = 37) | P value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gender, male (%) | 26 (59.1) | 8 (61.5) | 0.874 | 12 (60.0) | 22 (59.5) | 0.968 |
| Ethnicity, n (%) | 0.032* | 0.248 | ||||
| Malay | 32 (72.7) | 5 (38.5) | 15 (75.0) | 22 (59.5) | ||
| Chinese | 5 (11.4) | 2 (15.4) | 3 (15.0) | 4 (10.8) | ||
| Indian | 5 (11.4) | 6 (46.2) | 1 (5.0) | 10 (27.0) | ||
| Others | 2 (4.5) | 0 | 1 (5.0) | 1 (2.7) | ||
| Age, years | 13 (11,15) | 13 (11,15) | 0.632 | 14 (12,16) | 12 (10,14) | 0.007** |
| CAP score (dB/m) | 315 (293, 346) | 200 (133, 229) | 0.0001*** | 306 (288, 350) | 300 (231, 325) | 0.195 |
| Severity of steatosis, n (%) | – | 0.387 | ||||
| Normal | – | 13 (100) | 2 (10.0) | 11 (29.7) | ||
| Mild | 2 (4.5) | – | 1 (5.0) | 1 (2.7) | ||
| Moderate | 2 (4.5) | – | 1 (5.0) | 1 (2.7) | ||
| Severe | 40 (90.9) | – | 16 (80.0) | 24 (64.9) | ||
| LSM score (kPa) | 6.6 (4.1, 8.4) | 4.7 (3.6, 6.5) | 0.156 | 8.95 (7.65, 11.05) | 4.3 (3.6, 6.1) | 0.0001*** |
| Severity of fibrosis, n (%) | 0.261 | – | ||||
| No significant fibrosis | 26 (59.1) | 11 (84.6) | – | 37 (100) | ||
| Mild | 10 (22.7) | 0 | 10 (50.0) | – | ||
| Moderate | 4 (9.1) | 1 (7.7) | 5 (25.0) | – | ||
| Severe | 4 (9.1) | 1 (7.7) | 5 (25.0) | – | ||
| ALT (UL−1) | 32.5 (22.3, 80.3) | 18.0 (13.5, 32.5) | 0.003** | 73.0 (38.8, 101.5) | 23.0 (15.5, 32.0) | <0.0001*** |
| AST (UL−1) | 28.0 (22.0, 39.0) | 18.0 (15.8, 22.5) | 0.012* | 37.0 (23.0, 60.0) | 23.0 (17.0, 28.5) | 0.011* |
| GGT (UL−1) | 26.0 (18.3, 59.3) | 17.0 (12.5, 26.0) | 0.007** | 57.5 (31.0, 72.0) | 18.0 (15.0, 25.5) | <0.0001*** |
| Platelet (109 L−1) | 357 (302, 395) | 275 (236, 333) | 0.059 | 314 (246, 368) | 354 (281, 405) | 0.175 |
| Diabetes Mellitus (DM), n (%) | 13 (29.5) | 5 (38.5) | 0.543 | 10 (50.0) | 8 (21.6) | 0.028* |
| Fasting blood sugar (FBS) (mmol L−1) | 4.9 (4.6, 5.6) | 4.8 (4.6, 4.9) | 0.370 | 5.1 (4.5, 8.8) | 4.8 (4.6, 5.1) | 0.241 |
| HbA1c (%) | 5.5 (5.2, 6.0) | 5.4 (5.1, 6.3) | 0.696 | 5.7 (5.4, 7.6) | 5.4 (5.2, 5.7) | 0.035* |
| Fasting serum insulin (mU/L) | 24.2 (16.8, 37.1) | 23.0 (17.2, 41.8) | 0.969 | 24.1 (19.3, 33.9) | 27.1 (15.2, 38.8) | 0.814 |
| HOMA-IR | 5.1 (3.8, 9.1) | 4.5 (1.9, 9.3) | 0.404 | 7.1 (5.3, 13.0) | 4.2 (3.0, 6.8) | 0.005** |
| Hypertension, n (%) | 4 (9.1) | 1 (7.7) | 0.876 | 1 (5.0) | 4 (10.8) | 0.459 |
| Blood pressure | ||||||
| Systolic (mmHg) | 118 (112, 124) | 122 (114, 128) | 0.589 | 121 (116, 131) | 116 (109, 123) | 0.039* |
| Diastolic (mmHg) | 65 (63,73) | 67 (57,71) | 0.514 | 67 (64,74) | 65 (62,73) | 0.348 |
| Triglyceride (TG) (mmol L−1) | 1.5 (1.0, 2.2) | 1.3 (0.85, 1.85) | 0.418 | 2.05 (1.1, 2.3) | 1.3 (0.8, 1.7) | 0.005** |
| Total cholesterol (mmol L−1) | 4.7 (4.0, 5.2) | 4.3 (3.6, 4.7) | 0.078 | 5.0 (4.1, 5.8) | 4.4 (3.8, 4.8) | 0.024* |
| HDL-C (mmol L−1) | 1.1 (0.9, 1.2) | 1.13 (1.04, 1.16) | 0.524 | 1.1 (0.9, 1.2) | 1.10 (0.9, 1.2) | 0.482 |
| LDL-C(mmol L−1) | 2.97 (2.42, 3.26) | 2.54 (2.16, 2.94) | 0.092 | 2.97 (2.51, 3.83) | 2.64 (2.26, 3.03) | 0.141 |
| TG: HDL-C ratio | 1.3 (0.9, 2.2) | 1.1 (0.9, 1.7) | 0.318 | 1.9 (1.0, 2.4) | 1.2 (0.8, 1.4) | 0.012* |
| BMI (kg m−2) | 30.5 (27.9, 34.3) | 26.4 (22.2, 29.6) | 0.003** | 33.5 (27.9, 37.8) | 29.5 (25.6, 31.9) | 0.009** |
| BMI category, n (%) | 0.001** | 0.493 | ||||
| Normal | 0 | 1 (7.7) | 0 | 1 (2.7) | ||
| Overweight | 2 (4.5) | 4 (30.8) | 2 (10.0) | 4 (10.8) | ||
| Obese | 16 (36.4) | 7 (53.8) | 6 (30.0) | 17 (45.9) | ||
| Morbid obese | 26 (59.1) | 1 (7.7) | 12 (60.0) | 15 (40.5) | ||
| Waist circumference (cm) | 94.5 (86.0, 104.5) | 85.8 (73.0, 95.4) | 0.059 | 99.2 (91.5, 114.8) | 89.0 (83.5, 97.5) | 0.005** |
| Male | 97.5 (90.5, 107.1) | 90.3 (84.6, 106.9) | 0.191 | 106.3 (97.0, 116.3) | 91.0 (84.6, 98.8) | 0.001** |
| Female | 89.0 (82.5, 94.5) | 71.0 (66.1, 85.3) | 0.035* | 88.0 (81.6, 100.0) | 88.0 (71.0, 93.5) | 0.598 |
| Metabolic syndrome, n (%) | 20 (45.5) | 3 (23.1) | 0.148 | 12 (60.0) | 11 (29.7) | 0.026* |
All data are expressed as median (interquartile range) unless specified. P values are calculated by Chi- square test for categorical variable and Mann-Whitney U-test for continuous variables. P < 0.05 (statistically significant). CAP, controlled attenuation parameter; LSM, liver stiffness measurement; ALT, alanine aminotransferase; AST, aspartate aminotransferase; GGT, gamma-glutamyl transferase; HOMA-IR, Homeostatic Model Assessment for Insulin Resistance; HDL-C, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol; LDL-C, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol; TG:HDL-C ratio, triglyceride to high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio; BMI, body mass index. Bold values represent statistically significant values.
P < 0.05,
P < 0.01,
P < 0.001.