RESUMO
Background: The aim of this study was to find the difference between the liver function test (LFT) and hepatorenal index (HRI), before and after the administration of Prunus mume (PM) and choline i.e., to find the predictors of the non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) severity according its HRI, during the three-month follow-up period. Methods: LFT, glucose, and lipid tests were determined in 168 NAFLD patients, at baseline and after three-month drug treatment. HRI was calculated by Image J software analyzing the ultrasound images, and according its value, 3 groups of NAFLD were formed. Results: The HRI at baseline (1.3598±0.1744) and after 3 months therapy (1.3061±0.1923) differs significantly (p<0.0001). Plasma glucose (FPG) (p<0.0001), glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) (P=0.002), alanine aminotransferase (ALT) (p<0.0001), aspartate aminotransferase (AST) (P=0.0006), gamma-glutamil transferase (γ-GT) (P=0.0053), high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-Ch) (p<0.0001) and triglycerides (P=0.041) differ significantly, too. HRI is positively correlated with: HbA1c (P=0.035), ALT (P=0.002), AST (P=0.003), γ-GT (P=0.043), and triglycerides (P=0.002) and inversely correlated with HDL-Ch (P=0.011). In multiple regression results (standard coefficient and p-value), the independent predictors for HRI in NAFLD patients were: HbA1c (0.1443, 0.0004), ALT (0.001142, 0.0081), triglycerides (0.0431, 0.0235) and γ-GT (0.001376, 0.0329). Conclusion: Three-month administration of PM and choline have beneficial effects on the regulation of glucose and lipid metabolism (HDL-Ch), and on LFT. This plant extract significantly reduces the levels of FPG, HbA1c, ALT, AST, γ-GT, triglycerides and increases HDL-Ch. The triglycerides, ALT, γ-GT and HbA1c are positive independent predictors for the severity of NAFLD.
RESUMO
OBJECTIVE: Osteoporosis and abdominal aortic calcification (AAC) are associated with increased morbidity and mortality in postmenopausal women. The aim of this study was to determine the accuracy of anterior-posterior (AP) dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) compared with that of X-ray lateral lumbar radiography (LLR) in detecting and scoring AAC. METHODS: In this cross-sectional study conducted in 56 postmenopausal asymptomatic females aged 59.0 ± 9.3 years and who never used medications to treat osteoporosis before, we determined femoral neck and lumbar spine bone mineral density (BMD) by AP DXA and AAC by X-ray LLR. We hypothesized that the subtracted femoral neck BMD (BMDFN) from lumbar spine BMD (BMDLS) presented as ΔBMD=BMDLS-BMDFN would have a diagnostic value in detecting abdominal vascular calcification. RESULTS: The mean BMDFN was 0.744 ± 0.184 g/cm(2), and the mean BMDLS was 0.833 ± 0.157 g/cm(2) (p<0.0001); the mean ΔBMD was 0.089 ± 0.077 g/cm(2), and the mean AAC score was 2.182 ± 1.982. Bivariate Pearson's correlation analysis revealed a significant positive correlation between AAC and ΔBMD (r=0.449, p=0.0006); by linear regression analysis, R(2)=0.2019, and by multiple regression analysis, ßst=13.5244 (p<0.0001). We found a sensitivity of 64.3% and specificity of 82.9% by receiver operating characteristic [ROC; area under the ROC curve (AUC=0.759)] in the prediction of AAC by ΔBMD. CONCLUSION: This AP subtracting BMD DXA method provides a useful tool for detecting and scoring subclinical and extensive AAC in postmenopausal women using a simple, semiquantitative, and accurate scoring system with minimal radiation exposure and low cost.