Table 2.
Background factors stratified by BMI at the time of liver biopsy
| Lean NAFLDa | Non-lean NAFLDb | P value | |
|---|---|---|---|
| n | 170 | 276 | |
| Age | 53 (18–85) | 52 (18–87) | 0.549 |
| Sex, male (%) | 61.2 | 59.4 | 0.765 |
| Body mass index (kg/m2) | 23.1 (18.1–24.9) | 28.7 (25.0–42.4) | < 0.01 |
| History of liver cancer (%) | 8.9 | 5.1 | 0.119 |
| History on non-liver malignancy (%) | 9.5 | 8.3 | 0.730 |
| Type 2 diabetes mellitus (%) | 23.5 | 38.4 | < 0.01 |
| Dyslipidemia (%) | 28.2 | 37.5 | 0.051 |
| Hypertension (%) | 31.8 | 52.9 | < 0.01 |
| Hyperuricemia (%) | 2.9 | 14.9 | < 0.01 |
| Smoking (%) | 22.1 | 22.7 | 0.906 |
| Albumin (g/dL) | 4.1 (2.8–5.4) | 4.1 (3.0–6.9) | 0.994 |
| Aspartate aminotransferase (IU/L) | 36 (12–312) | 51 (15–378) | < 0.01 |
| Alanine aminotransferase (IU/L) | 53 (13–458) | 81 (15–783) | < 0.01 |
| Gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase (IU/L) | 72 (11–786) | 71 (16–990) | 0.672 |
| Hemoglobin (g/dL) | 14.5 (6.5–17.5) | 14.8 (9.2–18.7) | 0.192 |
| Platelet count (× 104/μL) | 22.0 (4.0–47.1) | 20.8 (5.0–37.7) | 0.236 |
| Triglyceride (mg/dL) | 130 (31–1088) | 145 (52–570) | 0.021 |
| Total cholesterol (mg/dL) | 196 (101–290) | 205 (103–370) | 0.350 |
| High-density lipoprotein cholesterol (mg/dL) | 47 (22–85) | 44 (14–86) | 0.227 |
| Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (mg/dL) | 116 (27–218) | 124 (31–243) | 0.073 |
| Fasting blood sugar (mg/dL) | 100 (70–237) | 105 (65–287) | < 0.01 |
| Glycated hemoglobin (%) | 5.8 (4.4–10.8) | 6.0 (4.3–12.6) | 0.027 |
| Ferritin (ng/mL) | 191 (10–1472) | 249 (1–2067) | < 0.01 |
| NAFLD fibrosis score | − 2.415 (− 7.060 to 3.095) | − 1.550 (− 5.481 to 3.394) | < 0.01 |
| Genetic variation | |||
| Cases tested, (n) | 110 | 204 | |
| PNPLA3 rs738409, GG (%) | 41.8 | 41.7 | 1.000 |
| TM6SF2 rs58542926, non CC (%) | 26.4 | 23.5 | 0.585 |
| HSD17B13 rs6834314, non AA (%) | 56.4 | 45.7 | 0.078 |
| Histopathological findings | |||
| Cases examined, (n) | 170 | 276 | |
| Steatosis 3 (%)c | 18.9 | 29.2 | 0.018 |
| Ballooning 2 (%)d | 22.5 | 29.9 | 0.099 |
| Lobular inflammation 2–3 (%)e | 23.7 | 44.2 | < 0.01 |
| NAFLD activity score 5–8 (%) | 34.9 | 58.0 | < 0.01 |
| Fibrosis stage 3–4 (%) | 22.4 | 38.4 | < 0.01 |
Data are number of patients or median (range) values
P value by Mann–Whitney U test for continuous parameters and Fisher’s exact test for categorical parameters
aLean NAFLD, BMI < 25.0 kg/m2, bnon-lean NAFLD, BMI ≥ 25.0 kg/m2, cSteatosis 3, steatosis of ≥ 66% of hepatocytes, dBallooning 2, hepatocyte ballooning of many cells, eLobular inflammation 2–3, ≥ 2 foci per 200 × field