Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease, as a Possible Independent Risk Factor for Obliterative Arteriopathy

Introduction: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, the hepatic manifestation of metabolic syndrome is the most common liver disease in civilized countries. There are a large number of studies which have demonstrated that cardiovascular diseases have a higher prevalence in those who suffer from non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Direct causality is still largely debated, most components of metabolic syndrome being present in the case of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease too, which are well known risk factors for atherosclerosis also. The aim of our study was to find out the relations between non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and peripheral arterial disease (PAD).
Material and methods: Our retrospective study included 176 patients with PAD and 175 controls. We recorded the stages of PAD, risk factors and associated cardiovascular conditions.
Results: Our results show a significantly higher prevalence of PAD in patients suffering from non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. We also found that the association of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and obesity or hypertension or hypertrygliceridaemia increase the risk of symptomatic PAD.
Conclusions: The prevalence of peripheral arterial disease is higher in patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver compared to the control group. Studies demonstrating the role of non-alcoholic fatty liver as an independent risk factor for this particular form of atherosclerosis are needed.