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Increase in the skeletal muscle mass to body fat mass ratio predicts the decline in transaminase in patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease

  • Original Article—Liver, Pancreas, and Biliary Tract
  • Published:
Journal of Gastroenterology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

A Letter to the Editor to this article was published on 24 July 2018

Abstract

Background

The aim of this retrospective study was to determine the effect of skeletal muscle and body fat on liver function in patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) diagnosed by liver biopsy.

Methods

Among the 219 patients with NAFLD enrolled in this study was a cohort of 139 patients who had their body composition measured with Inbody720 at baseline and at ≥ 1 year postbaseline, to elucidate the relationship between liver function and changes in skeletal muscle and body fat mass. Multivariate analysis was used to identify factors influencing low skeletal muscle mass index (SMI, defined as 7 kg/m2 in men, and 5.7 kg/m2 in women) and the skeletal muscle mass to body fat mass ratio (SF ratio).

Results

Of the 219 patients enrolled, 27 (12.3%) had a low SMI. Patient age (> 70 years) and female gender were identified as risk factors for low SMI. Hepatic fibrosis was not associated with SMI. In the cohort followed up at baseline and 12 months later, transaminase activity, body fat mass, and SMI significantly decreased over time. Changes in the SF ratio were significantly associated with changes in liver function. An increase in the SF ratio [hazard ratio (HR) 10.99 in men, 6.849 in women] was a predictor of reduced ALT, independent of age and other backgrounds.

Conclusions

In the patients with NAFLD, SMI was decreased, even in the early stages of NAFLD. Therapeutic strategies for NAFLD require a reduction in body fat mass and the maintenance of skeletal muscle is also needed.

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Abbreviations

ALT:

Alanine aminotransferase

AST:

Aspartate aminotransferase

BFMI:

Body fat mass index

BMI:

Body mass index

BMR:

Basal metabolic rate

CI:

Confidence interval

FPG:

Fasting plasma glucose

GGT:

γ Glutamyl transpeptidase

HbA1c:

Hemoglobin A1c

HDL-C:

High-density lipoprotein cholesterol

HR:

Hazard ratio

SF ratio:

SMI to BFMI ratio

LDL-C:

Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol

NAFLD:

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease

NAS:

NAFLD activity score

NASH:

Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis

SMI:

Skeletal mass index

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Acknowledgements

Financial support: This study was not supported by any institution funding.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, 465 Kajii-cho, Kawaramachi-Hirokoji, Kamigyo-ku, Kyoto, 602-8566, Japan

    Naoki Mizuno, Yuya Seko, Seita Kataoka, Keiichiroh Okuda, Mitsuhiro Furuta, Masashi Takemura, Hiroyoshi Taketani, Tasuku Hara, Atsushi Umemura, Taichiro Nishikawa, Kanji Yamaguchi, Michihisa Moriguchi & Yoshito Itoh

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  1. Naoki Mizuno
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Correspondence to Yuya Seko.

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Supplement Figure 1.

Correlations between changes in AST, ALT, and SF ratio. (PPTX 69 kb)

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Mizuno, N., Seko, Y., Kataoka, S. et al. Increase in the skeletal muscle mass to body fat mass ratio predicts the decline in transaminase in patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. J Gastroenterol 54, 160–170 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00535-018-1485-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00535-018-1485-8

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