Table 1.
Clinical, biochemical, and genetic characteristics of men with type 2 diabetes, stratified by presence and severity of NAFLD (using both liver ultrasonography and Fibroscan®)
| Patients without hepatic steatosis (n = 28) | Patients with hepatic steatosis alone (n = 32) | Patients with hepatic steatosis and significant fibrosis (n = 19) |
p value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age (years) | 71.3 ± 8 | 64.8 ± 8 | 62.8 ± 10 | 0.002 |
| Weight (kg) | 76.8 ± 14 | 86.9 ± 15 | 91.5 ± 10 | 0.001 |
| BMI (kg/m2) | 25.8 ± 4 | 28.2 ± 4 | 29.8 ± 4 | 0.002 |
| Waist circumference (cm) | 97 ± 10 | 103 ± 13 | 108 ± 10 | 0.004 |
| Diabetes duration (years) | 13.5 (6–22) | 10 (7–18) | 9 (4–15) | 0.275 |
| Current smokers (%) | 10.7 | 12.5 | 15.8 | 0.913 |
| Systolic blood pressure (mmHg) | 131 ± 20 | 133 ± 20 | 131 ± 16 | 0.863 |
| Diastolic blood pressure (mmHg) | 72 ± 12 | 77 ± 8 | 82 ± 9 | 0.005 |
| Platelet count (× 100,000/mm3) | 221 ± 66 | 222 ± 52 | 234 ± 69 | 0.743 |
| Fasting glucose (mmol/L) | 7.2 ± 1.8 | 7.1 ± 1.3 | 7.4 ± 1.6 | 0.779 |
| Hemoglobin A1c (mmol/mol Hb) | 51.3 ± 8.7 | 53.7 ± 6.2 | 53.1 ± 8.4 | 0.475 |
| Fasting insulin (mU/L) | 4.1 (2.7–7.2) | 6.0 (3.8–9.1) | 9.6 (4.2–16.8) | 0.001 |
| HOMA–IR score | 1.3 (0.7–1.9) | 1.8 (1.1–2.8) | 3.2 (1.3–5.9) | < 0.001 |
| Total cholesterol (mg/dL) | 163 ± 45 | 141 ± 35 | 149 ± 30 | 0.083 |
| HDL cholesterol (mg/dL) | 51 ± 11 | 48 ± 16 | 43 ± 11 | 0.167 |
| Triglycerides (mg/dL) | 92 (69–144) | 106 (89–138) | 158 (124–209) | 0.002 |
| AST (IU/L) | 24 ± 5 | 27 ± 11 | 27 ± 8 | 0.289 |
| ALT (IU/L) | 13 ± 5 | 17 ± 8 | 18 ± 9 | 0.022 |
| GGT (IU/L) | 19 (14–29) | 22 (15–34) | 30 (17–50) | 0.064 |
| Albumin (g/dL) | 48 ± 3 | 49 ± 2 | 48 ± 3 | 0.197 |
| Creatinine (umol/L) | 91.7 ± 27 | 81.2 ± 22 | 89.4 ± 17 | 0.199 |
| e-GFRCKD-EPI (mL/min/1.73 m2) | 83.1 ± 28 | 96.2 ± 29 | 83.3 ± 19 | 0.107 |
| Hypertension (%) | 85.7 | 75.0 | 79.0 | 0.596 |
| Ischemic heart disease (%) | 14.3 | 12.5 | 21.1 | 0.671 |
| Diabetic retinopathy, any degree (%) | 15.4 | 20.0 | 11.1 | 0.788 |
| Metformin (%) | 75.0 | 96.9 | 100 | 0.005 |
| Sulfonylureas (%) | 17.9 | 28.1 | 36.9 | 0.320 |
| Pioglitazone (%) | 17.9 | 15.6 | 10.5 | 0.855 |
| DPP-4 inhibitors (%) | 14.3 | 28.1 | 21.1 | 0.448 |
| GLP-1 receptor analogues (%) | 21.4 | 28.1 | 31.6 | 0.767 |
| SGLT-2 inhibitors (%) | 3.6 | 21.9 | 21.1 | 0.093 |
| Antiplatelet drugs (%) | 44.4 | 58.1 | 42.1 | 0.500 |
| Beta-blockers (%) | 40.7 | 22.6 | 36.8 | 0.322 |
| ARB or ACE inhibitors (%) | 66.7 | 58.1 | 57.9 | 0.798 |
| Calcium-channel blockers (%) | 25.9 | 25.8 | 36.9 | 0.659 |
| Diuretics (%) | 25.9 | 22.6 | 31.6 | 0.758 |
| Statins (%) | 85.7 | 83.9 | 68.4 | 0.312 |
| HMW adiponectin (ug/mL) | 5.5 (2.3–7.6) | 2.4 (1.8–3.7) | 1.6 (1.0–2.9) | < 0.001 |
| Fibroscan-assessed LSM (kPa) | 4.5 (3.7–5.3) | 5.5 (4.7–6.2) | 8.8 (7.9–11.8) | ND |
| PNPLA3 rs738409 | 0.973 | |||
| CC (%) | 46.4 | 50.0 | 52.6 | |
| CG (%) | 50.0 | 43.8 | 42.1 | |
| GG (%) | 3.6 | 6.3 | 5.3 | |
| TM6SF2 rs58542926 | 0.525 | |||
| CC (%) | 89.3 | 84.4 | 94.7 | |
| CT (%) | 10.7 | 15.6 | 5.3 | |
| TT (%) | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| MBOAT7 rs641738 | 0.754 | |||
| CC (%) | 32.1 | 60.7 | 7.1 | |
| CT (%) | 31.3 | 53.1 | 15.6 | |
| TT (%) | 31.7 | 63.2 | 5.3 |
Bold entries in P-value are statistically significant
Sample size, n = 79. Data are expressed as means ± SD, medians, and IQR (in parentheses) or relative percentages. Differences among the three patient groups were tested by the one-way ANOVA for normally distributed variables, the Kruskal–Wallis test for non-normally distributed variables (i.e., diabetes duration, triglycerides, GGT, fasting insulin, HOMA-IR score, adiponectin), or the chi-square test for categorical variables. Hypertension was defined as blood pressure ≥ 140/90 mmHg and/or drug treatment
Abbreviations: ACE angiotensin-converting enzyme, ALT alanine aminotransferase, ARB angiotensin II receptor blocker, AST aspartate aminotransferase, BMI body mass index, DPP-4 dipeptidyl peptidase-4, e-GFR estimated glomerular filtration rate, GGT gamma-glutamyltransferase, GLP-1 glucagon-like peptide-1, HMW high molecular weight, HOMA-IR homeostasis model assessment-insulin resistance, MBOAT7 membrane-bound O-acyltransferase domain-containing 7, PNPLA3 patatin-like phospholipase domain-containing protein 3, SGLT-2 sodium/glucose cotransporter-2, TM6SF2 transmembrane 6-superfamily member 2, ND not determined