Insight to the association among fibroblast growth factor 21, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and cardiovascular outcomes: A population-based study.

OBJECTIVE

We aimed to investigate whether there was a joint effect of fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) or interaction on the incidence of cardiovascular diseases based on a community-dwelling population.

METHODS

Serum FGF21 levels were determined using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent method. NAFLD was diagnosed via ultrasonography. Multivariable-adjusted cox proportional hazards models were used to assess the joint effects of FGF21 and NAFLD on the major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE).

RESULTS

A total of 1194 participants were enrolled in the final analysis. The multivariable-adjusted hazard ratio (HR) of MACE was 1.84 (95% confidence interval (CI) 1.18-2.86) in participants with diagnosed NAFLD at baseline, compared with those without NAFLD at baseline. The multivariable-adjusted HRs of MACE across quintiles of serum FGF21 levels at baseline were 1.00, 1.48 (95%CI 0.68-3.21), 2.01 (95%CI 0.98-4.13), 1.94 (95%CI 0.94-4.02) and 2.14 (95%CI 1.03-4.44) respectively. Participants with high FGF21 levels and NAFLD at baseline showed the highest risk of MACE with a significant interaction between the presence of NAFLD and serum FGF21 levels.

CONCLUSIONS

Both FGF21 and NAFLD were associated with MACE, while the association between FGF21 and MACE may be interacted by the presence of NAFLD at baseline.