Background: The second-leading cause of cirrhosis and liver transplantation in the world is non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). NAFLD encompasses a wide spectrum of diseases, including simple steatosis, non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), cirrhosis, and its effects, including hepatocellular cancer and mortality. In individuals with NAFLD, serum ferritin levels have been proposed as a potential predictor of the frequency and severity of liver fibrosis. The aim of the current study is to evaluate serum levels of ferritin in NAFILD as predictor to disease severity and its relation to male gender and smoking.
Patients and methods: Ninety-nine adults enrolled in the study between January 2019 and May 2019. Patients had to have NAFLD, based on the NAFLD Liver Fat Score (NLFS Score) and the Hepatic Steatosis Index (HIS Score). Advanced fibrosis was defined as stages 3-4. Analyses were performed. Serum ferritin levels were assessed for each through venous sampling.
Results: On assessment of liver fibrosis by the FIB-4 index, there was 67 had F0 (67.7%), 27 had F1-2 (27.3%) and 5 had F3-4 (5.1%). there was a significant correlation between serum ferritin and disease severity. Male patients had higher significant values than females (p=0.003). Smoker patients showed highly significant values in comparison to non-smokers (p=0.014) serum ferritin where it was higher in males. No significant correlation was found between liver fibrosis and serum ferritin.
Conclusions: In NAFLD patients, higher serum ferritin was linked to male gender and smoking history. The findings suggest that NAFLD in a male smoker adult is more susceptible to liver disease development and should be treated aggressively.