Role of Serum Uric Acid Level in Predicting Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

Objective To investigate the role of serum uric acid(UA)levels in predicting the non-alcoholic fatty liver(NAFLD)in type 2 diabetes mellitus(T2DM)patients.Methods Using the research data(chicTR-TNC-11001489)from Kailuan Group,we retrospctively enrollled 2 937 eligible subjects.Based on the the quantiles of the baseline UA levels,these patients were divided into 4 group:group A(≤216 μmol/L,n=738),group B(216~ μmol/L,n=749),group C(263~ μmol/L,n=722),and group D(316 μmol/L,n=728).The incidence of NAFLD as well as age,waist circumference(WC),body mass index(BMI),triglycerides(TG),high density lipoprotein cholesterol(HDL-C),low density lipoprotein cholesterol(LDL-C),total cholesterol(TC),and fasting plasma glucose(FPG)were recorded.The potential risk factors of NAFLD were analyzed using conditional Logistic regression analysis.Results The incidence of NAFLD was 28.9%(850/2 937),among whom males accounted for 28.1%(691/2 460),and with statistically significant difference when compared with females(33.3%,159/477)(χ2=5.34,P0.05).The incidence of NAFLD was 22.5%(166/738)in group A,28.8%(216/749)in group B,29.5%(213/722)in group C,and 35.0%(255/728)in group D(χ2=28.15,P0.01).The horizontal comparisons of gender,age,average WC,BMI and TG,HDL-C,LDL-C,TC,and FPG among these four groups showed significant difference(P0.01).Taking A as reference group,univariate Logistic regression analysis showed that,the odds ratio(OR)of NAFLD was 1.37(95%CI(1.11,1.77),P=0.005),1.44(95%CI(1.14,1.83),P=0.002),and 1.86(95%CI(1.48,2.34),P=0.000) in groups B,C,and D.After the introduction of gener and age,the OR of NAFLD was 1.45(95%CI(1.15,1.84),P=0.002),1.52(95%CI(1.20,1.93),P=0.001),and 2.03(95%CI(1.60,2.57),P=0.000) in groups B,C,and D.After the further introduction of TG,TC,HDL-C,LDL-C,FPG,and BMI,the OR for NAFLD in groups B,C,and D were 1.36(95%CI(1.06,1.74),P=0.016),1.37(95%CI(1.07,1.74),P=0.012),and 1.68(95%CI(1.31,2.17),P=0.000).Conclusion T2DM patients are susceptible to NAFLD,with the blood UA level as its independent risk factor.