STUDYING THE ASSOCIATION BETWEEN NON-ALCOHOLIC FATTY LIVER DISEASE AND NON-ALCOHOLIC FATTY PANCREAS DISEASE USING TRANSABDOMINAL ULTRASOUND AND ENDOSCOPIC ULTRASOUND

Abstract

Background: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is characterized by hepatic triglyceride accumulation not due to alcohol consumption (<20 g ethanol per day), resulting in steatosis and hepatic inflammation. NAFLD is currently the most common liver disorder, particularly in Western countries. Worldwide, the prevalence of NAFLD is about 25%. Nonalcoholic fatty pancreas disease (NAFPD) is an excessive lipid accumulation in the pancreas in the absence of significant alcohol intake. Endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) can provide detailed images of the entire pancreas. The use of high-frequency US waves and the ability to simultaneously image adjacent organs like the liver and spleen in real-time. Objective: To determine the possible association between non-alcoholic fatty pancreatic disease (NAFPD) and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Patients and methods: This study was conducted on 100 subjects divided into two equal groups: Group I Included individuals with sonographically proven NAFLD, and Group II (control group): Included healthy individuals with no sonographic evidence of NAFLD. All cases were selected from Internal Medicine Department at Al-Hussein Hospital, Al-Azhar University, during the period from April 2019 to April 2020. Results: Based on the severity of fatty pancrease, moderate and severe fatty pancrease was significantly associated with older age with p value 0.0001. Fasting-blood-sugar (FBS), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), and aspartate-aminotransferase (AST) significantly higher in moderate and severe fatty pancreases too with p value 0.0001, 0.001 and 0.0001 respectively. Serum albumin level was the lowest in severe fatty pancreases with p value 0.001. In addition, low-density lipoprotein (LDL), TG and cholesterol was significantly higher in severe fatty pancreases with p value 0.0001, 0.0001 and 0.0001 respectively. High-density lipoprotein (HDL) was the highest in absent fatty pancreases with p value 0.0001. Patient with severe fatty pancrease was only present in fatty liver group with 24%. Conclusion: Degree of pancreatic steatosis was significantly related to old age, high erythrocyte sedimentation rate, low albumin level, high cholesterol, high triglycerides, and low high-density lipoprotein. Pancreatic steatosis was significantly correlated to presence of fatty liver.