Is nonalcoholic fatty liver disease a complication of diabetes?

Although nonalcoholic fatty liver disease( NAFLD) is a liver disease,it has attracted more and more attention among endocrinologists. There are complex interactions between the metabolic status of diabetes and the pathology of NAFLD,and they promote the development of each other. In the population with type 2 diabetes mellitus( T2 DM),the incidence rate of NAFLD is as high as 57%-80%,and NAFLD patients with diabetes are more likely to develop progressive liver diseases such as nonalcoholic steatohepatitis( NASH) and liver fibrosis. NAFLD also leads to the deterioration of glucose and lipid metabolism disorder in diabetes patients,as well as the development and progression of chronic macrovascular and microvascular complications in diabetes. The above evidence supports the view that NASH should be considered a complication of T2 DM. Once a definite diagnosis of T2 DM is made in clinical practice,the risk of NASH or progressive fibrosis should be evaluated and intervention should be given as early as possible.