Abstract
Simple SummarySarcopenia and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease share common pathological and physiological mechanisms that can co-occur with aging. Low skeletal muscle mass index and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease were related, regardless of abdominal obesity. Maintenance of muscle mass should be emphasized for prevention of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Management of fatty liver also could be an important strategy to preserve muscle mass.Although sarcopenia is known to be a risk factor for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), whether NAFLD is a risk factor for the development of sarcopenia is not clear. We investigated relationships between NAFLD and low skeletal muscle mass index (LSMI) using three different datasets. Participants were classified into LSMI and normal groups. LSMI was defined as a body mass index (BMI)-adjusted appendicular skeletal muscle mass <0.789 in men and <0.512 in women or as the sex-specific lowest quintile of BMI-adjusted total skeletal muscle mass. NAFLD was determined according to NAFLD liver fat score or abdominal ultrasonography. The NAFLD groups showed a higher hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for LSMI than the normal groups (HRs = 1.21, 95% CIs = 1.05–1.40). The LSMI groups also showed a higher HRs with 95% CIs for NAFLD than normal groups (HRs = 1.56, 95% CIs = 1.38–1.78). Participants with NAFLD had consistently less skeletal muscle mass over 12 years of follow-up. In conclusion, LSMI and NAFLD showed a relationship. Maintaining muscle mass should be emphasized in the management of NAFLD.
Highlights
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has become the most common chronic liver disease worldwide with increasing obesity, metabolic syndrome, and dyslipidemia [1] affecting up to 20% in the general population [2,3] and 16–33% in Korean, respectively [4]
The mean value of basal energy expenditure (BEE) and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol were significantly lower in the NAFLD group
Prevalence of abdominal obesity and proportion of history of cardiovascular disease (CVD) were higher in the NAFLD group, whereas proportion of current smoker was higher in the NAFLD group
Summary
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has become the most common chronic liver disease worldwide with increasing obesity, metabolic syndrome, and dyslipidemia [1] affecting up to 20% in the general population [2,3] and 16–33% in Korean, respectively [4]. There were few studies to investigate whether NAFLD is a risk factor or the consequential result for sarcopenia and to verify the relationship between NAFLD and sarcopenia. If NAFLD is associated with the occurrence of sarcopenia, the maintenance of muscle mass in NAFLD patients should be emphasized more strongly, as patients with sarcopenia have an increased risk of all-cause mortality [15,16]. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between NAFLD and the skeletal muscle mass using three Korean population-based datasets
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