ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to assess the clinical relevance of the controlled attenuation parameter (CAP) by analyzing the correlations between CAP and indirect indices of liver steatosis in obese or overweight individuals. METHODS: Consecutive participants were prospectively enrolled. BMI, waist circumference, hepatic steatosis index, fatty liver index, percent fat mass and regional fat masses as assessed by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA), fat signal fraction as assessed by MRI, and CAP were obtained. Pearson's r coefficient was used to test the correlation between two study variables. RESULTS: A total of 88 individuals were studied. They included 31 men [age, 50.4 years (12.9 years); BMI, 30.7 kg/m (4.8 kg/m)] and 57 women [age, 49.0 years (12.6 years); BMI, 31.4 kg/m (5.6 kg/m)]. DXA, anthropometric parameters, and fatty liver index were moderately correlated with CAP in men. In women, there was a moderate correlation of CAP with the hepatic steatosis index and anthropometric parameters and only a slight or fair correlation of CAP with DXA parameters. CAP and fat signal fraction showed a good correlation (r=0.65 in men, P=0.002; r=0.68 in women, P=0.0009). CONCLUSION: Measurement of CAP is a reliable method for noninvasive assessment of liver steatosis, showing a correlation with other indirect markers of central obesity and a good correlation with MRI results.
Subject(s)
Fatty Liver/diagnostic imaging , Fatty Liver/etiology , Overweight/complications , Absorptiometry, Photon/methods , Adult , Anthropometry/methods , Body Mass Index , Cross-Sectional Studies , Elasticity Imaging Techniques/methods , Fatty Liver/diagnosis , Female , Humans , Magnetic Resonance Imaging/methods , Male , Middle Aged , Obesity/complications , Obesity/physiopathology , Overweight/physiopathology , Pilot Projects , Prospective Studies , Waist CircumferenceABSTRACT
PURPOSE: This study was conducted to prospectively investigate the interobserver reproducibility of controlled attenuation parameter (CAP) measurements and the relationship among the CAP and body mass index (BMI), gender and age. METHODS: Consecutive subjects were studied using the M+ probe of the FibroScan device (Echosens, Paris, France). Measurements were performed by two raters (rater1 and rater2). Interobserver agreement was assessed by using the concordance correlation coefficient (CCC). The Pearson r coefficient was used to test correlation between two study variables, and linear regression was used for the multivariate model. RESULTS: Three hundred fifty-one subjects (227 males and 124 females) were prospectively studied. The CCC was 0.82 (95 % CI 0.78-0.85) overall, 0.80 (95 % CI 0.75-0.85) for BMI <25 kg/m(2), 0.76 (95 % CI 0.69-0.84) for BMI 25-29 kg/m(2) and 0.65 (95 % CI 0.41-0.88) for BMI ≥30 kg/m(2). The CCC was 0.44 (95 % CI 0.31-0.56) for CAP values ≤240 dB/m and 0.72 (95 % CI 0.65-0.79) for CAP values >240 dB/m. In univariate analysis, age and BMI by gender were correlated with the CAP. Multiple regression analysis confirmed the relationship of the CAP with age and BMI, but not with gender. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study show that the interreader agreement in CAP measurement is good. In healthy volunteers, the CAP is strongly correlated with age and BMI.