Association Between Visfatin and Hepatic Steatosis in the General Population During Long-Term Follow-Up

The aim of this study was to investigate any association between the adipose tissue-derived protein, visfatin, and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and its potential long-term impact on hepatic steatosis. A cross-sectional study including 2429 randomly selected subjects was performed in 2002. Later, 403 subjects were re-evaluated in 2013. Serum visfatin concentrations were determined by sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Phenotyping included abdominal ultrasonography, anthropometric data, and laboratory investigations. No association was found between circulating visfatin levels and the presence of NAFLD at baseline (2002: p=0.0967) or during follow-up (2013: p=0.1312). However, a significant increase in visfatin levels in relation to the level of steatosis was seen during follow-up (p<0.0001). During the more than 10-year follow-up, the metabolic status of the study subjects worsened, with a significant increase in body mass index (BMI) (p<0.0001), waist-to-hip ratio (p<0.0001), triglycerides (TG) (p<0.0001), low-density lipoprotein (p=0.0305), homeostasis model assessment (p<0.0001), and presence of diabetes (p<0.0001). This change was accompanied by an increase in serum visfatin levels, which showed a weak correlation with BMI (p<0.0001, r=0.27586) and presence of diabetes (p<0.0043, r=0.14188). A statistically significant correlation between leucocyte numbers and serum visfatin concentration (p<0.0001, r=0.25615) was found. We found no association between visfatin levels and the presence or absence of NAFLD or the degree of hepatic fatty infiltration at baseline. There was a strong correlation between serum visfatin concentrations and the number of leucocytes, which may suggest a proinflammatory role for visfatin.