Remnant Lipoprotein Cholesterol as a Factor Related to Adult Fatty Liver Disease

Abstract

Context: Dyslipidemia is related to fatty liver disease (FLD), whose relationship with remnant lipoprotein cholesterol (RLP-C), a component of blood lipids, remains unclear.

Objective: To clarify the correlation between RLP-C and the occurrence and severity of FLD and establish an FLD discriminant model based on health check indicators.

Methods: Retrospective study of participants who underwent health check-up in the First Affiliated Hospital of China Medical University (Shenyang, China) between January and December 2019. We categorized participants according to liver ultrasound results and analyzed the correlation between RLP-C and occurrence of FLD (n = 38 885) through logistic regression, restricted cubic spline, and receiver operating characteristic curve. We categorized the severity of FLD according to the control attenuation parameter and analyzed the correlation between RLP-C and FLD severity through multiple logistic regression; only males were included (n = 564).

Results: The adjusted OR (aOR) per SD between RLP-C and FLD was 2.33 (95% CI 2.21-2.46, P < .001), indicating a dose-response relationship (P < .0001). The optimal cut-off value of RLP-C was 0.45 mmol/L and the area under the curve (AUC) was 0.79. The AUC of the 8-variable model was 0.89 in both the training and the validation sets. FLD severity was related to the level of RLP-C (aOR per SD = 1.29, 95% CI 1.07-1.55, P = .008).

Conclusion: RLP-C has a strong positive correlation with FLD occurrence and FLD severity. These results may help clinicians identify and implement interventions in individuals with high FLD risk and reduce FLD prevalence.

Keywords: discriminant model; fatty liver disease; lipoproteins; remnant lipoprotein cholesterol.