Cardiovascular Diabetology (Jun 2022)

Impact of metabolic syndrome and metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease on cardiovascular risk by the presence or absence of type 2 diabetes and according to sex

  • Yasuhiro Matsubayashi,
  • Kazuya Fujihara,
  • Mayuko Yamada-Harada,
  • Yurie Mitsuma,
  • Takaaki Sato,
  • Yuta Yaguchi,
  • Taeko Osawa,
  • Masahiko Yamamoto,
  • Masaru Kitazawa,
  • Takaho Yamada,
  • Satoru Kodama,
  • Hirohito Sone

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12933-022-01518-4
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 21, no. 1
pp. 1 – 10

Abstract

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Abstract Background To determine the impact of metabolic syndrome (MetS) and/or metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD), which are pathophysiologically similar and include insulin resistance, on the development of new-onset cardiovascular disease with and without type 2 diabetes and according to sex. Methods This study included 570,426 individuals without a history of cardiovascular disease who were enrolled in a nationwide claims database from 2008 to 2016 and were classified by the presence or absence of MetS and/or MAFLD stratified by the presence or absence of type 2 diabetes and sex. The fatty liver index was used to determine the presence or absence of fatty liver that required a diagnosis of MAFLD. Risks of developing coronary artery disease (CAD) and cerebrovascular disease (CVD) in each category were analyzed using a multivariate Cox proportional hazard model. Results During a median follow-up of 5.2 years, 2252 CAD and 3128 CVD events occurred. Without type 2 diabetes the hazard ratio (HR) (95% CI) for CAD/CVD compared with neither MAFLD nor MetS was 1.32 (1.17–1.50)/1.41(1.28–1.57) for MAFLD only (without MetS), 1.78 (1.22–2.58)/1.66 (1.34–2.06) for MetS only (without MAFLD), and 2.10 (1.84–2.39)/1.73 (1.54–1.95) for MAFLD + MetS. For those with type 2 diabetes, the HR for CAD for MAFLD only (compared with neither MAFLD nor MetS) was 1.29 (1.06–1.58), for MetS only 1.34 (0.84–2.13), and for MAFLD + MetS 1.22 (1.02–1.47). For CVD, there was a significant increase in HR only in MAFLD + MetS [1.44 (1.18–1.76)]. The results of the analysis stratified by sex showed that MAFLD had a greater impact in men, and MetS had a greater impact in women regarding the development of CAD. Conclusions Distinguishing between MetS and/or MAFLD in the presence or absence of type 2 diabetes and according to sex may aid in accurately identifying patients at high risk of cardiovascular disease.

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