Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in patients with HCV genotype 4

Hepatitis C infection is considered the leading cause of chronic liver disease in Egypt. Hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotype 4 is the predominant genotype in the Middle East including Egypt.1 A striking feature of HCV infection is its association with fat accumulation within hepatocytes,2 which is defined by the presence of hepatic steatosis with or without steatohepatitis.3 Hepatic steatosis has been reported in 30–70% of patients with HCV infection, even when the most common causes of steatosis are excluded.4 A causal relationship between infection with HCV genotype 3 and the incidence of hepatic steatosis has been elicited.5 In Egypt the true prevalence of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is unknown among patients with HCV who are commonly infected with genotype 4. Our aim was to …