Simple Anthropometric Indices are Useful for Predicting Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease [NAFLD] in Asian Indians

Background and aims With the rising prevalence of obesity and metabolic syndrome, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has become the most common liver disorder in both developed and developing nations. Several studies on NAFLD have described waist circumference, a surrogate marker of visceral fat accumulation and waist height ratio as a better screening tool for NAFLD and metabolic syndrome than body mass index (BMI). We conducted this study to assess simple abdominal obesity indices as a predictor of NAFLD and determine the appropriate cut-off levels with reference to NAFLD. Methods 1000 subjects with NAFLD detected ultrasonographically and 360 controls attending a Gastroenterology Clinic at Cuttack, Odisha were included in the study and subjected to detailed anthropometric measurements. The abdominal anthropometric cut offs were determined using ROC analysis. Statistical analysis was performed by using SPSS software version 16. Results All receiver operating curve (ROC) curves of waist circumference, waist-height ratio and BMI were significantly above the diagonal line. There were no significant differences in the area under the curve values among these abdominal obesity indices in each gender. The appropriate cut-off point of waist circumference in screening for NAFLD was 89 cm for men and 84 cm for women and the optimal cut-off point of waist-height ratio was 0.53 for men and 0.57 for women and the cut-off point of waist to hip ratio was 0.94 for men and 0.87 for women with very good sensitivity and specificity. Conclusions The simple anthropometric parameters, such as BMI, waist circumference, waist-hip ratio and waist-height ratio are useful for predicting NAFLD in Indian adults. The anthropometry cut offs would be very useful in setting target points of life style modification and weight reduction. Besides, our study also clearly demonstrated that a simple assessment of BMI is as efficacious as other anthropometry parameters in predicting NAFLD.