MR quantification of total liver fat in patients with impaired glucose tolerance and healthy subjects.

Zhi Dong,Tao Chan,Zi-Ping Li,Shi-Ting Feng,Huasong Cai,Ling Wu,Zhongwei Zhang,Yanji Luo,Yanbing Li,Melania Manco

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0111283

Abstract

ObjectiveTo explore the correlations between liver fat content and clinical index in patients with impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) and healthy subjects.Materials and Methods56 subjects were enrolled and each of them underwent upper-abdominal MRI examination that involved a T1 VIBE Dixon sequence. 14 was clinically diagnosed with IGT (collectively as IGT group ) while 42 showed normal glucose tolerance,(collectively as NGT group). NGT group was further divided into NGTFat (BMI≥25, 18 subjects) and NGTLean (BMI<25, 24 subjects). The total liver fat contents was measured and compared with clinical findings and laboratory results in order to determine statistical correlations between these parameters. Differences among IGT, NGTFat and NGTLean groups were evaluated.ResultsFor all the subjects, fat volume fractions (FVFs) ranged from 4.2% to 24.2%, positive correlations was observed with BMI, waist hip ratio(WHR), low density lipoprotein(LDL), fasting plasma insulin(FPI), homeostasis model assessment insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) and homeostasis model assessment β(HOMAβ). FVFs of IGT group (p = 0.004) and NGTFat group (p = 0.006) were significantly higher than those of NGTLean group.ConclusionsPeople with higher BMI, WHR and LDL levels tend to have higher liver fat content. Patients with BMI≥25 are more likely to develop IGT. Patients with higher FVF showed higher resistance to insulin, thus obtained a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Highlights

Ectopic fat deposition is commonly seen in many diseases, especially in metabolic disorders, such as obesity, insulin resistance, and other components of metabolic syndrome
For all the subjects, fat volume fractions (FVFs) ranged from 4.2% to 24.2%, positive correlations was observed with body mass index (BMI), waist hip ratio(WHR), low density lipoprotein(LDL), fasting plasma insulin(FPI), homeostasis model assessment insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) and homeostasis model assessment b(HOMAb)
This can be achieved by techniques such as liver biopsy/pathology, computed tomography (CT) scanning, ultrasound, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)

Summary

Introduction

Ectopic fat deposition is commonly seen in many diseases, especially in metabolic disorders, such as obesity, insulin resistance, and other components of metabolic syndrome. It plays an important role in the development and progression of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) [1,2,3]. Many techniques and methods have been developed for diagnosing fatty liver disease and quantifying liver fat content This can be achieved by techniques such as liver biopsy/pathology, computed tomography (CT) scanning, ultrasound, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Magnetic resonance (MR) spectroscopy has been widely-applied and can provide accurate evaluation of hepatic fat content, it is time consuming and evaluation only limits to part of the liver [13,14,15]

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Conclusion