Study: Bi-Directional Relationship Between Fatty Liver Disease and CVD

A bi-directional relationship exists between fatty liver disease (FLD) and cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors, with FLD capable of leading to CVD, and vice versa.

The relationship between FLD and CVD is not well understood. In order to further explore this association, researchers conducted a study of 1051 participants. The objective was to determine whether FLD predicted the development of CVD risk factors and whether CVD risk factors predicted new onset FLD during 6-years of follow-up.
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The prevalence of FLD at baseline was 18%. Of those without FLD, 101 participants developed FLD over 6 years. Baseline FLD was associated with increased risk of hypertension and type 2 diabetes. In a parallel analysis, individuals with hypertension, hypertriglyceridemia, impaired fasting glucose, or type 2 diabetes at baseline were at increased risk of developing FLD compared with those who did not have these conditions.

“The present study demonstrated bi-directional relationships between fatty liver and CVD risk factors among middle- to older-aged Framingham Heart Study participants,” the researchers concluded.

—Michael Potts

Reference:

Ma J, Hwang S, Pedley A, et al. Bi-directional analysis between fatty liver and cardiovascular disease risk factors [published online November 11, 2016]. Hepatology. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jhep.2016.09.022.