Correlation of adipose tissue with liver histology in Asian Indian patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD)

Background. There is sparse literature on the association of adipose tissue with liver histology in patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).Aim. To study the correlation of visceral adipose tissue (VAT), subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT) and total adipose tissue (TAT) with liver histology in Indian patients with NAFLD.Material and methods. A single slice CT scan at the level of L4-L5 vertebrae was done to assess the abdominal VAT and SAT volumes in 21 patients with histological diagnosis of NAFLD. Adult treatment panel III criteria with modified abnormal waist were used to define metabolic syndrome (MS). Histological grading was done according to the NAFLD activity score (NAS).Results. Twenty-one patients with NAFLD 13 males, median age: 35 years, median BMI: 25.97 kg/m²] were included prospectively. Even though overweight/obese patients had severe liver disease, there was no difference in the volume of VAT adjusted for BMI between 6 (28.5%) lean and 15 (71.5%) overweight/obese patients. Patients with NASH and borderline NASH were older, obese with higher VAT and SAT volumes than no-NASH group. SAT volume (SATV) correlated significantly with hepatic steatosis but none of the adipose tissue volumes had any correlation with other histological variables. Both SATV and TAT volume (TATV) correlated significantly with severity of liver disease as determined by NAS score whereas presence of MS or insulin resistance had no correlation with histological severity.Conclusion. Both subcutaneous and total adipose tissue volume are related to the disease severity as determined by NAFLD activity score in Indian patients with NAFLD.