Prevalence of ultrasound-diagnosed non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in a hospital cohort and its association with anthropometric, biochemical and sonographic characteristics

Background: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is considered as the most common liver disease in Western countries with still rising prevalence due to a life style favoring the development of the metabolic syndrome. Aim: To investigate the prevalence of ultrasound-diagnosed NAFLD in patients with referral for sonographic examination of the abdomen, and to determine risk factors. Methods: After exclusion of patients with known liver disease or risk factors for secondary NAFLD, a total of 155 arbitrarily choose patients (mean age 53.6±17.4 years; 52.6% male) from the interdisciplinary ultrasound department…