Early cardiac electrical and structural changes in patients with non-obese non-alcoholic fatty liver disease

Background    Obese non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) was found to increase the risk of developing atrial fibrillation (AF) regardless of the metabolic syndrome subgroups that may accompany it. In this study, the effect of NAFLD on the structural and electrical functions of the heart was investigated using tissue Doppler echocardiography (TDE) in non-obese NAFLD patients without any known risk factors for AF.
Material and methods    The study included 43 female patients (31.3±3.8 years), who had stage 2–3 hepatosteatosis detected by liver ultrasonography and diagnosed as non-obese NAFLD (patient group), and 31 healthy women (control group, 32.5±3.6 years). In addition to standard echocardiographic parameters, inter- and intra-atrial electromechanical delay (EMD) were evaluated by TDE.
Results    Interatrial EMD (PA lateral – PA tricuspid) and intraatrial EMD (PA septum – PA tricuspid) were significantly longer in patient group (16.1±3.4 vs. 12.5±2.3 ms, p<0.001, and 8.4±1.6 vs. 6.6±1.6 ms, p<0.001, respectively). At the subclinical level. atrial size, left ventricular diastolic function, and left ventricular wall thickness measurements were greater in the patient group.
Conclusion    Inter-atrial and intra-atrial EMD were detected in young women with non-obese NAFLD. In addition, at the subclinical level, structural and functional impairment was detected However, large-volume prospective studies are required to cobfirm these findings regarding the development of AF in non-obese NAFLD patients.

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