Background and Aim: The triglyceride glucose index (TyG) has been proposed as a promising indicator of both insulin resistance (IR) and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). However, the efficacy of the TyG index in predicting NAFLD has not been adequately studied, particularly in obese individuals.
Material and Methods: We analyzed 190 morbidly obese individuals. The TyG index, anthropometric obesity indices, homeostatic model assessment (HOMA-IR), and biochemical parameters were compared. NAFLD was diagnosed by hepatic ultrasonography and classified into four grades (0, 1, 2, and 3). Those in grades 2 and 3 are considered to have severe steatosis, while those in grades 0 and 1 are not.
Results: The area under the curve (AUC) values of the TyG index, body mass index (BMI), neck circumferences (NC), waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), and HOMA-IR did not differ significantly in predicting severe steatosis (0.640, 0.742, 0.725, 0.620 and 0.624 respectively). However, the AUC values of waist circumferences and alanine aminotransferase provided better predictions than the TyG index (0.782, 0.744 and 0.640 respectively).
Conclusions: The TyG index is highly effective in predicting both the presence and severity of NAFLD. The TyG index, however, did not outperform simple obesity indices in predicting NAFLD and its severity in obese patients.