Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease Common in Healthy HIV-Infected Outpatients

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is increasingly common in the general population, and data suggest that it might be even more common among HIV-infected individuals. However, few studies have examined disease patterns specifically in HIV-infected patients who are not coinfected with chronic viral hepatitis.

San Diego researchers assembled a cohort of 216 HIV-infected outpatients (mean age, 40; 94% men; mean estimated duration of HIV infection, 10 years) with neither chronic hepatitis B or C virus coinfection nor excessive alcohol use. Sonographic evidence of NAFLD was found in 67 patients (31%) and was estimated to be mild in 40, moderate in 19, and severe in 8. Liver biopsies performed in 55 patients revealed a similar prevalence of…