Prevalence of hypothyroidism and effect of thyroid hormone replacement therapy in patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease: A population-based study
Ashraf Almomani, Asif Hitawala, Prabhat Kumar, Sura Alqaisi, Dana Alshaikh, Motasem Alkhayyat, Imad Asaad
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is currently considered as the most common cause of chronic liver disease worldwide. Risk factors for NAFLD have been well-described, including obesity, type 2 diabetes mellites (T2DM), dyslipidemia (DLP) and metabolic syndrome. Hypothyroidism has been identified as an independent risk factor for the development of NAFLD, although the literature is inconsistent. AIM: To evaluate the prevalence of hypothyroidism in patients with NAFLD, assess if it is an independent risk factor and explore the effect of thyroxine replacement therapy. METHODS: value of < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Exclusion criteria were limited to age < 18 years. RESULTS: = 0.303). CONCLUSION: Hypothyroidism seems to be an independent risk factor for the development of NAFLD. Thyroid hormone replacement did not provide a statistically significant risk reduction. Further studies are needed to evaluate the effect of thyroid hormone replacement and assess if being euthyroid while on thyroid replacement therapy affects development and/or progression of NAFLD.