Associations Between Fatty Liver Index And Intracranial Vertebrobasilar Stenosis

Background and Objective:Fatty liver index,an algorithm that based on waist circumference,body mass index,triglycerides,and gamma-glutamyltransferase,can be used for diagnosis of liver steatosis.Previous studies indicated that FLI was positively associated with insulin resistance,coronary risk and increased intima-media thickness risk.Intracranial vertebrobasilar stenosis is an important cardiovascular/cerebrovascular disease that could endanger human health.To date,the association between FLI and intracranial vertebrobasilar stenosis remain unclear.This study aimed to explore the association between FLI and intracranial vertebrobasilar stenosis.Subjects and Methods:The participants included in the present study were selected from annually cheek-up population in East China health care hospital of Wuxi.From 2008 to August 2013,2368 participants who invoved in the baseline study were followed up for six years.We confirm and collect the information about the subjects who experienced intracranial vertebrobasilar stenosis events by TCD examination.Epidata 3.1 software was used to establish a database,and all data was checked after data entry for two times.All statistical analyses were conducted using SAS 9.4 and SPSS19.0 statistical softwares.The associations between FLI and intracranial vertebrobasilar stenosis were analyzed by the univariate and multivariate non-conditional logistic regression models,and OR(95% CI)were calculated.Cox proportional hazards models were used to evaluate the associations between FLI and intracranial vertebrobasilar stenosis,and HR(95% CI)were calculated.All P-values were based on a 2-sided test and a significance level of 0.05.Results:1.A total of 2368 participants completed the baseline survey,including 1920 males(81.08%)and 448 females(18.92%).There were 87 people with intracranial vertebrobasilar stenosis.2.In the cross-sectional study,the prevalence of intracranial vertebrobasilar stenosis in FLI <30,30?FLI <60 and FLI?60 was1.95%?5.28%?8.21%,respectively.Logistic regression analysis showed that the participants with 30?FLI <60 and FLI?60 have 2.03 times and 2.68 times more than the lowest FLI level after adjusting.The risk of intracranial vertebrobasilar stenosis increased with the increasing FLI level(trend P<0.05).Sensitivity analysis showed that the ORs(95%CIs)of intracranial vertebrobasilar stenosis for individuals in the FLI?30 group were 2.44(1.26,4.74)than those in the FLI<30 group.3.A total of 2281 participants with baseline data completed the follow-up survey,with an average of 5.81 years follow-up.A total of 177(7.76%)people were doing well with intracranial vertebrobasilar stenosis during study.The Kaplan–Meier curves results showed that the cumulative incidence rate of intracranial vertebrobasilar stenosis were 5.27%,10.45% and 14.24% for the persons with FLI <30,30?FLI <60,and FLI?60,respectively.Multivariate Cox analysis showed that the HR of intracranial vertebrobasilar stenosis with 30?FLI <60 and FLI?60 was 1.37 times and 1.65 times that for individuals with FLI<30 after adjusting.HRs of intracranial vertebrobasilar stenosis positively increased with FLI levels.Further stratified analysis found that the risk of intracranial vertebrobasilar stenosis significantly increased in participants with FLI?30,compared with those with FLI<30 among the groups of GGT?22U/L,TC<4.66mmol/L,HDL-C<1.25mmol/L,LDL-C<2.87mmol/L after adjustment.Sensitivity analysis showed that the HRs(95% CIs)of intracranial vertebrobasilar stenosis for individuals in the FLI?30 group were 1.44(1.02,2.04)than those in the FLI<30 group.Conclusions:1.FLI was independently associated with intracranial vertebrobasilar stenosis,and elevated FLI lever can significantly increase the risk of intracranial vertebrobasilar stenosis.2.The population with FLI?30 significantly increased the risk of intracranial vertebrobasilar stenosis in the groups of GGT?22U/L,TC<4.66mmol/L,HDL-C<1.25mmol/L and LDL-C<2.87mmol/L.