Background and Aim: Hyaluronic acid (HA), a fundamental component of the extracellular matrix, is associated with chronic liver diseases. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate quantitative HA measurement as a non-invasive marker for steatosis and fibrosis staging in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) with biopsy evidence.
Material and Methods: In this study, 52 NAFLD patients with biopsy evidence who met the inclusion criteria were included. Hepatic enzyme levels, HA levels and other laboratory findings were examined. In addition, degree of steatosis was determined via computed tomography (CT).
Results: According to the degree of steatosis, hyaluronic acid levels were 29.17±22.66, 39.85±60.28, 32.05±19.40, respectively, and no significant difference was found between the groups (p=0.584). In addition, hyaluronic acid levels were not found to be significant according to the degrees of steatohepatitis (p=0.860). However, a statistically significant relationship was found between steatosis levels detected by CT and biopsy (p < 0.01).
Conclusion: Serum HA level, other biochemical parameters and steatosis severity measurement via CT did not appear to have any diagnostic value for NASH. In this context, novel markers that may be useful for NAFLD diagnosis and severity assessment in risky individuals should be investigated