The impact of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) on the risk of incident type 2 diabetes is largely known. However, its extent to confer risk of incident diabetes is still unclear. A meta-analysis quantified the relationship between NAFLD and risk of incident diabetes.

PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science were explored for relevant studies. only large observational studies with a follow-up of a minimum of 1 year and NAFLD diagnosed by imaging methods were included. 

Data from selected studies were extracted and were subjected to meta-analysis using random-effects modeling.

The observations of the study were as follows-

• 19 observational studies with 296,439 individuals (30.1% with NAFLD) and about 16,000 cases of incident diabetes were included in the final analysis. 
• Patients with NAFLD possessed a greater risk of incident diabetes contrasting those without NAFLD. 
• The severity of NAFLD was directly proportional to the likelihood of developing incident diabetes; which increased across the ultrasonographic scores of steatosis but was, even more, greater among NAFLD patients with advanced high NAFLD fibrosis scores. 
• Sensitivity analyses confirmed these findings. 
• No significant publication bias was found. 

It was thus included that NAFLD is significantly linked with a two times increased risk of incident diabetes. 

Source: Mantovani A, Byrne CD, Bonora E, Targher G. Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease and Risk of Incident Type 2 Diabetes: A Meta-analysis, Diabetes Care 2018 Feb; 41(2): 372-382.https://doi.org/10.2337/dc17-1902