"Chronic Kidney Disease Confirmed in 12.4% of Patients with Fatty Liver"

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) was confirmed in 1 out of 10 patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).

The research team led by Eunhee Na, Director of the Medichek Research Institute at the Korea Association of Health Promotion, announced these findings in the recent issue of the SCIE-level international journal PLOS ONE on the 7th.

Korea Health Management Association MediCheck.

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is known to increase the risk of complications not only in liver diseases such as cirrhosis but also in diseases occurring in organs outside the liver. Chronic kidney disease is a stage before end-stage renal failure, with no specific symptoms until the disease progresses to a severe stage. If it advances to end-stage renal failure requiring dialysis, the financial burden of medical expenses increases significantly. It also raises the risk of cardiovascular disease.

This study was conducted on 8,909 individuals who underwent health checkups at 13 health promotion clinics of the Korea Association of Health Promotion from 2018 to 2021. As a result, the prevalence of chronic kidney disease in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease was 12.4%, and the prevalence of albuminuria and proteinuria, indicators reflecting chronic kidney disease, were 16.2% and 8.0%, respectively. Risk factors for the occurrence of chronic kidney disease included increased age, abdominal obesity, hypertension, prediabetes and diabetes, hypertriglyceridemia, and liver fibrosis.

Director Eunhee Na explained, "Both non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and chronic kidney disease are increasing together due to the rising trends of diabetes and obesity," adding, "Considering the aging of our society, early diagnosis and management through screening for chronic kidney disease are necessary in the general population, especially among those with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.