Prevalence of hepatic steatosis as assessed by controlled attenuation parameter (CAP) in subjects with metabolic risk factors in primary care. A population-based study

Primary care is the ideal setting for early identification of patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). NAFLD is a potentially progressive disease that may lead to cirrhosis and liver cancer but is frequently underrecognized because subjects at risk are often not evaluated. Controlled attenuation parameter (CAP) is a reliable method for non-invasive quantification of liver fat. It has the advantage of simultaneous measurement of liver stiffness (LS), an estimate of liver fibrosis. There is no information on CAP in subjects with risk factors from primary care. To investigate the prevalence of hepatic steatosis, as estimated by CAP, in subjects from the community with metabolic risk factors and correlate findings with clinical and biochemical characteristics and LS. Population-based study of 215 subjects with metabolic risk factors without known liver disease identified randomly from a primary care center. A control group of 80 subjects matched by age and sex without metabolic risk factors was also studied. CAP and LS were assessed using Fibroscan. Subjects with risk factors had CAP values higher than those of control group (268±64 vs 243±49dB/m,p 280dB/m) in subjects with risk factors was 43%. In multivariate analysis, fatty liver index (FLI) and HOMA were independent predictive factors of severe steatosis. There was a direct correlation between CAP and FLI values (r = 0.52,p