The relationship between blood uric acid levels and the incidence and progression of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in adolescent students

Abstract

Abstract: Objective To study the levels of blood uric acid and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) in adolescent students with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), and further explore the correlation between blood uric acid levels and the prevalence of NAFLD and ALT in adolescent students. Methods A retrospective analysis was conducted on the physical examination data of 312 adolescent students of a university in Beijing from 2017 to 2019. The prevalence of NAFLD was analyzed and the differences in ALT and uric acid levels between adolescent students with and without NAFLD were compared. And analyze the relationship between uric acid and NAFLD, as well as the correlation between uric acid and ALT. Methods In this study, the prevalence of NAFLD among adolescent students was 23.4%. The prevalence rate for males was 26.8%, for females was 18%, for underage adolescents was 25.6%, and for adult adolescents was 18.6% (P>0.05). The ALT levels in adolescent students with NAFLD have significantly increased (P<0.05). Adolescent students with NAFLD have significantly higher levels of uric acid compared to non NAFLD students (418.45 ± 77.65 μmol/L vs 357.35 ± 83.21 μmol/L). The prevalence of NAFLD in adolescent students with normal uric acid was 16.5%, and with hyperuricemia(>420 μmol/L)was 40.9% (P<0.05). Logistic regression analysis showed that uric acid was a risk factor for the occurrence of NAFLD (Odds ratio = 3.50), indicating that the adolescent students with hyperuricemia were 3.5 times more likely to develop NAFLD than those with normal uric acid, while other factors remain unchanged. Moreover, there was a significant positive correlation between uric acid and ALT. Conclusion Adolescent students with NAFLD have developed liver injury and elevated uric acid levels. Moreover, high uric acid is a risk factor for the occurrence of NAFLD, and as uric acid increases, liver damage will worsen to a certain extent.

Key words: Adolescent, Liver injury, Uric acid, Hyperuricemia, Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, Metabolic associated fatty liver disease

DING Jian-bo, LI Li, LI Xiu-hui. The relationship between blood uric acid levels and the incidence and progression of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in adolescent students[J]. Chinese Hepatolgy, 2025, 30(1): 87-90.

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