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Alloveda Liver Update: Parallel epidemic of Obesity and Fatty liver disease in patients with COVID-19

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eMediNexus    09 December 2020

Recent researches conducted on Covid-19 pandemic has shown an increased possibility of severe COVID-19, in patients with established cardiovascular disease (CVD) and cardiovascular risk factors. The authors of the present study corroborated these similar findings and focuses on the relevance of adopting cardioprotective lifestyle measures such as weight management, in CVD patients during the COVID-19. In addition, the study also determined the effects for statin-induced liver injury in COVID-19 patients with CVD, who are undergoing treatment with particular antiviral agents. 

 

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, recently renamed as metabolic-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD), is a highly prevalent disease affecting up to 1 billion patients worldwide. Apart from high prevalence of MAFLD, a steep increase in central obesity has become a global pandemic. Thus, the world is currently experiencing two parallel pandemics in the form of Covid-19 and MAFLD. A study also concluded that presence of obesity in Covid-19 patients with MAFLD has likely a six-fold augmented risk of severe disease, which was independent of the presence of diabetes, dyslipidaemia, and hypertension. It has been proposed that amplified cytokine storm is the underlying mechanism implicated in increased severity of Covid-19 infection in patients with MAFLD and hepatic fibrosis.

 

Although there is strong evidence for an interrelationship between MAFLD and atherosclerotic CVD, it is usually remained ignored while evaluating and managing patients with more traditional CVD risk factors. Various pathological mechanisms responsible for the association between fatty liver disease and CVD include endothelial dysfunction, systemic inflammation, and insulin resistance. It has been observed that patients with MAFLD have a worse prognosis, if they are suffering from an acute coronary syndrome.

 

The patients with pre-existing chronic medical conditions, such as CVD and diabetes, pose significant challenges during this current global pandemic as they develop more severe Covid-19 symptoms which may further need prolonged hospitalization and intensive care management. Evidence based observations demonstrate that the prognosis in obese COVID-19 patients are worse, with higher mortality rate. The authors thus, advises monitoring of weight gain caused due to prolonged societal lockdown measures, by promoting healthy eating and physical activity. 

Source: Yeoh SL, Flaherty GT. Fatty liver disease in obese patients with COVID-19: a tale of two pandemics? Eur J Prev Cardiol. 2020;zwaa059. Published 2020 Oct 24. 

 

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