TY - JOUR
T1 - Significance of ALT/AST ratio for specifying subjects with metabolic syndrome in its silent stage
AU - Ohgo, Hideki
AU - Yokoyama, Hirokazu
AU - Hirose, Hiroshi
AU - Kawabe, Hiroshi
AU - Saito, Ikuo
AU - Tomita, Kengo
AU - Hibi, Toshifumi
PY - 2009/1
Y1 - 2009/1
N2 - Aims: Association between metabolic syndrome (MetS) and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) was verified and significance of liver function tests, especially alanine aminotransferase/aspartate aminotransferase ratio (ALT/AST) to evaluate the statuses of MetS and/or visceral fat accumulation was examined. Materials and Methods: After excluding subjects with liver diseases other than NAFLD, 1643 male and 1764 female Japanese were cross-sectionally examined. The diagnosis of MetS was done by its clinical criteria for Japanese with some modifications. Results: Levels of AST, ALT, gamma glutamyl transpeptidase and ALT/AST were significantly higher in subjects with MS than in those without it. Stepwise regression analyses indicated that AST, ALT, and ALT/AST in male and ALT/AST in female were significantly associated with waist circumference (WC), a marker of visceral fat accumulation. Among these associations, the association between WC and ALT/AST was always significant even when subjects with normal level of ALT of WC were selectively examined. Conclusions: NAFLD can be considered as one of morbid conditions of MetS, i.e. visceral fat accumulation. Among liver function test items, ALT/AST could be a powerful index reflecting their progression even in their pre-diagnosis/silent phases.
AB - Aims: Association between metabolic syndrome (MetS) and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) was verified and significance of liver function tests, especially alanine aminotransferase/aspartate aminotransferase ratio (ALT/AST) to evaluate the statuses of MetS and/or visceral fat accumulation was examined. Materials and Methods: After excluding subjects with liver diseases other than NAFLD, 1643 male and 1764 female Japanese were cross-sectionally examined. The diagnosis of MetS was done by its clinical criteria for Japanese with some modifications. Results: Levels of AST, ALT, gamma glutamyl transpeptidase and ALT/AST were significantly higher in subjects with MS than in those without it. Stepwise regression analyses indicated that AST, ALT, and ALT/AST in male and ALT/AST in female were significantly associated with waist circumference (WC), a marker of visceral fat accumulation. Among these associations, the association between WC and ALT/AST was always significant even when subjects with normal level of ALT of WC were selectively examined. Conclusions: NAFLD can be considered as one of morbid conditions of MetS, i.e. visceral fat accumulation. Among liver function test items, ALT/AST could be a powerful index reflecting their progression even in their pre-diagnosis/silent phases.
KW - ALT/AST
KW - Metabolic syndrome
KW - Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease
KW - Visceral fat accumulation
KW - Waist circumference
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=62749179603&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=62749179603&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.dsx.2008.10.001
DO - 10.1016/j.dsx.2008.10.001
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:62749179603
VL - 3
SP - 3
EP - 6
JO - Diabetes and Metabolic Syndrome: Clinical Research and Reviews
JF - Diabetes and Metabolic Syndrome: Clinical Research and Reviews
SN - 1871-4021
IS - 1
ER -