Table 3.
Levels of FGF21 (pg/ml) in groups with ALC (n = 41), NALC (n = 34) and healthy controls (n = 21) according to self-reported drinking behaviour and ETG levels
| Groups | Alcohol consumption | n (%) | Mean (SD) | Median (IQR) | p-value (U-test) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ALC | Self-reported alcohol consumption | Positive | 5 (12) | 471 (624) | 156 (359) | – |
| Negative | 36 (88) | 494 (710) | 275 (348) | 0.5744 | ||
| ETG levels | Positive | 9 (22) | 1056 (1216) | 589 (1056) | – | |
| Negative | 32 (78) | 333 (347) | 213 (216) | 0.0441* | ||
| NALC | Self-reported alcohol consumption | Positive | 7 (21) | 322 (293) | 247 (289) | – |
| Negative | 27 (79) | 317 (511) | 183 (240) | 0.5877 | ||
| ETG levels | Positive | 4 (12) | 490 (284) | 431 (377) | – | |
| Negative | 30 (88) | 296 (489) | 182 (182) | 0.0263* | ||
| Controls | Self-reported alcohol consumption | Positive | 13 (67) | 303 (216) | 271 (236) | – |
| Negative | 7 (33) | 306 (247) | 261 (329) | 0.8773 | ||
| ETG levels | Positive | 0 (0) | – | – | – | |
| Negative | 21 (100) | 299 (217) | 261 (239) | – |
Positive self-reported alcohol consumption 0.5 unit/week or more (1 unit alcohol was one beer (0.5 l), one glass of wine (0.25 l) or one shot (4 cl), e.g. 20 g pure alcohol/unit)
Negative self-reported alcohol consumption less than 0.5 unit/week
Positive ETG level >0.5 μg/ml
Negative ETG level <0.5 μg/ml
ALC alcoholic liver cirrhosis, NALC nonalcoholic liver cirrhosis, IQR interquartile range, ETG ethyl glucuronide, SD standard deviation, FGF21 fibroblast growth factor 21
* significance p < 0.05