ABSTRACT
Background & objective: Association between adiponectin and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has been reported in west. Studies in Indian population are lacking. This study was undertaken to assess the association of hypoadiponectinemia with NAFLD in Asian Indians. Method: In this cross-sectional study, subjects were randomly selected from Phase 5 of the Chennai Urban Rural Epidemiology Study (CURES), an epidemiological study based on a representative population of Chennai in south India. One hundred twenty one subjects without NAFLD and 72 subjects with NAFLD were selected. NAFLD was diagnosed by ultrasonography. Serum adiponectin levels were measured using radioimmunoassay. Insulin resistance was calculated using Homeostasis Assessment model (HOMA-IR). Results: Serum adiponectin values were significantly lower in subjects with NAFLD compared to those without [5.6 μg/ml (95% Confidence Interval (CI) 5.0 - 6.3 μg/ml] vs 7.4 μg/ml (95% CI: 6.7 - 8.1 μg/ml, P<0.01). Adiponectin levels decreased with increasing severity of NAFLD. Subjects with moderate to severe steatosis had significantly lower adiponectin levels (5.1μg/ml, 95% CI: 4.1- 6.4 μg/ml) compared to subjects with mild steatosis (5.9 μg/ml, 95% CI: 5.0 - 6.9 μg/ml; P<0.001) and subjects without NAFLD (7.3 μg/ml, 95% CI: 6.6 - 8.0 μg/ml; P<0.01). Multiple logistic regression analysis revealed adiponectin to be negatively associated with NAFLD [Odds Ratio (OR): 0.865, 95% Confidence Interval (CI): 0.792- 0.944, P=0.001]. This remained statistically significant even after adjusting for confounding factors age, gender, body mass index, insulin resistance, waist circumference, total cholesterol, triglycerides and glucose intolerance (OR: 0.873, 95% CI: 0.793 - 0.961; P=0.005). Interpretation & conclusion: NAFLD is associated with lower serum adiponectin levels independent of conventional cardiovascular risk factors in Asian Indians known to have high prevalence of diabetes and coronary artery disease.