[Comparison of serum uric acid and liver enzyme levels in adolescents with obesity and with metabolic syndrome]. / Comparación de los niveles séricos de ácido úrico y enzimas hepáticas entre adolescentes con obesidad y con síndrome metabólico.

ABSTRACT

INTRODUCTION: a relationship has been observed between elevated levels of liver enzymes and uric acid with the presence of metabolic syndrome (MS) in the pediatric population. OBJECTIVE: to compare serum liver enzyme and uric acid levels between adolescents with and without MS. METHODS: a cross-sectional study was carried out in adolescents with obesity between 10 and 18 years old. Somatometric data, serum insulin, lipid profile, uric acid levels and liver enzymes (aspartate aminotransferase [AST], alanine aminotransferase [ALT] and gamma-glutamyl transferase [GGT]) were analyzed. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: Student's t test or the Chi-square test was used to evaluate differences between groups. RESULTS: a total of 1095 adolescents with obesity were included (444 with MS and 651 without MS). The group with MS had a higher BMI (with MS 2.28 vs without MS 2.11 p < 0.001), with no difference in body fat (42.9 % vs 42.9 %, p = 0.978). The MS group had significantly higher levels of AST (34.4 vs. 29.5, p = 0.013), ALT (42.2 vs. 34.6, p = 0.003), and uric acid (6.17 vs. 5.74, p = 0.002). comparison to the group without MS. The proportion of ALT (40.5 % vs 29.5 %, p = 0.029) and altered uric acid (58.1 % vs. 45.6 %, p = 0.019) was higher in the MS group. CONCLUSIONS: serum levels of ALT, AST and uric acid in adolescents with obesity and MS were higher compared to those without MS. Altered ALT was a risk factor for SM.