Assessment of hepatic steatosis by computed tomography and its relation with coronary artery disease

ObjectivesTo assess the association between nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and coronary artery disease (CAD) frequency and severity using multidetector computed tomography.BackgroundFatty liver disease is a common disorder with an increasing prevalence. It is considered to be an important association with several cardiovascular risk factors and to be a component of metabolic syndrome.Patients and methodsThis study was carried out on 175 patients presented to the Radiology Department at Menoufia University Hospital and some private centers from January 2020 to March 2021 and who were referred from cardiology and internal medicine outpatient clinics. Twenty nine patients were excluded according to the exclusion criteria. All patients were subjected to clinical assessment, coronary CT angiography, and CAD-reporting and data system was used to assess the CAD severity. Nonenhanced CT examination of the liver was used to assess hepatic steatosis.ResultsAmong 146 patients enrolled into our study, 54 (37%) patients were diagnosed with NAFLD; 39 (72.2%) of them showed CAD. There was positive significant association (P = 0.003) between NAFLD and CAD and positive strong association (P = 0.001) between NAFLD and CAD grades by CAD-reporting and data system.ConclusionNAFLD is significantly associated with CAD in a grade-dependent manner, and assessment of NAFLD may be helpful for cardiovascular risk stratification.