The association between serum uric acid (SUA) levels and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is controversial.
We compared the association of SUA levels with NAFLD, abnormal alanine transferase (ALT), and the degree of liver fibrosis to clarify the association of SUA levels with NAFLD.
We conducted a retrospective cross-sectional study. Adult patients who underwent a health check-up (N = 1,343) were included for analysis. Fatty liver was diagnosed by abdominal ultrasonography. The degree of liver fibrosis was determined using the NAFLD fibrosis score (NFS). Pearson correlation analysis showed a stronger correlation of SUA level with the fatty liver index (
Pearson correlation and logistic regression together indicated SUA level is more closely associated with hepatic steatosis than abnormal liver function test or hepatic fibrosis.