Abstract: Objective To investigate the effects of probiotics and compound glycyrrhizin on liver function and intestinal flora in the treatment of obese children with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Methods A total of 120 obese children with NAFLD were enrolled from May 2019 to May 2024, and were divided into control group and observation group. The control group was treated with compound glycyrrhizin, and the observation group was treated with compound glycyrrhizin and probiotics. Serum aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanase aminotransferase (ALT), γ-glutamyltranspeptidase (γ-GT), intestinal flora, tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) were compared, and the efficacy and adverse reactions were evaluated between the two groups. Results After treatment, AST, ALT, γ-GT, TNF-α, and IL-6 in observation group [(38.72±9.15) U/L, (42.44±8.17) U/L, (95.48±28.19) U/L, (24.73±5.28) μg/L, (16.71±3.14) μg/L] were lower than those in control group [(56.16±10.31) U/L, (57.48±9.35) U/L, (129.21±33.75) U/L, (37.15±6.52) μg/L, (20.45±3.56) μg/L] (P<0.05). After treatment, the number of bifidobacterium and lactobacillus in observation group [(8.63±0.44) lg/g, (8.87±0.54) lg/g] was higher than those in control group [(8.11±0.52) lg/g, (8.41±0.73) lg/g], and the number of E. coli [(6.55±0.47) lg/g] was lower than that in control group [(6.88±0.59) lg/g] (P<0.05). After treatment, the total effective rate of observation group was higher than that in control group (91.67% vs. 76.67%, P<0.05). The two groups had comparable adverse reactions (P>0.05). Conclusion Probiotic-assisted compound glycyrrhizin can significantly improve liver function, alleviate intestinal flora disorder and inflammation in obese-NAFLD children, with good efficacy and safety.

Key words: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, Compound glycyrrhizin, Probiotics, Liver function, Inflammation