ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
Non-alcoholic hepatic steatosis (NAS) is characterized by excess fat accumulation in hepatocytes, causing portal and lobular inflammation and hepatocyte injury.
OBJECTIVE:
We aimed to evaluate the alterations in monocyte count to high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio (MHR) in patients with grade 2 or 3 fatty liver disease and the association of this marker with liver function tests and insulin resistance.
METHODS:
In this retrospective analysis; patients diagnosed and followed for the grade 2 or 3 fatty liver disease were included in the patient group and the patients who had undergone abdominal ultrasound for any reason and who were not having any fatty liver disease were included in the control group.
RESULTS:
Totally 409 cases were included in the study. Among participants, 201 were in the control group, and 208 were in the NAS group (111 were having grade 2 and 97 were having grade 3 steatosis). The monocyte/HDL ratio was significantly higher in the NAS group compared with the healthy controls (P=0.001). There was a significant positive correlation between the monocyte/HDL ratio and age (r=0.109; P=0.028), ALT (r=0.123, P=0.014) and HOMA-IR (r=0.325, P=0.001) values.
CONCLUSION:
In conclusion, the monocyte to high-density lipoprotein ratio significantly increases in fatty liver disease and correlates with insulin resistance. Since it was suggested as a prognostic marker in atherosclerotic diseases, elevated MHR values in fatty liver disease should be evaluated cautiously.
Keywords:
Monocyte/HDL ratio; hepatosteatosis; non-alcoholic hepatic steatosis; insulin resistance
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