ABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the distribution of somato-types in Chinese medicine and its correlations with body mass index (BMI), blood lipids and hepato-enzymes in patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>From January 2008 to December 2008, the somato-types of 1 163 NAFLD patients were categorized, and its correlations with BMI, blood lipids and hepato-enzymes were analyzed.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Among the 1 163 patients, 401 were categorized as qi-deficiency type and 371 as phlegm-dampness type, accounting for 66.38%. Levels of BMI, blood lipids (TC, TG, LDL) and hepato-enzymes (ALT, AST, GGT) in patients of phlegm-dampness type were higher than those in patients of other types, the differences were statistically significant (P<0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Qi-deficiency type and phlegm-dampness type are the dominant pathogenetic somsto-types in patients with NAFLD; abnormal BMI, blood lipids and hepato-enzymes may present in those of phlegm-dampness type more frequently.</p>