Circulating Iron Levels Interaction with Central Obesity on the Risk of Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease: A Case–Control Study in Southeast China.

>bold<>italic<Objectives:>/italic<>/bold< We aimed to evaluate the associations between body iron stores and the risk of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in a Chinese population and explore whether this effect may be modified by other factors. >bold<>italic<Methods:>/italic<>/bold< A 1: 1 frequency-matched case–control study was conducted, including 482 NAFLD cases and 490 gender- and age-matched controls. Serum levels of ferritin, hepcidin, and C-reactive protein were measured. >bold<>italic<Results:>/italic<>/bold< Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that hepcidin was not associated with NAFLD risk; however, elevated serum ferritin was significantly associated with increased risk of NAFLD (adjusted OR 1.619, 95% CI 1.158–2.267), and hepcidin:ferritin ratio was significantly associated with decreased risk of NAFLD -(OR->sub<adjusted>/sub< 0.702, 95% CI 0.501–0.984). When stratified by gender, a significant association was found between elevated serum ferritin and hepcidin:ferritin ratio and NAFLD only for women (OR>sub<adjusted>/sub< 2.131, 95% CI 1.151–3.944 and OR>sub<adjusted>/sub< 0.414, 95% CI 0.219–0.781, respectively). A significant multiplicative interaction between central obesity and elevated serum hepcidin was observed (>italic/italic< < 0.05). >bold<>italic<Conclusions:>/italic<>/bold< Elevated serum ferritin and hepcidin:ferritin ratio are associated with NAFLD in a Chinese population. Although serum hepcidin is not associated with NAFLD, it may augment the risk effect of central obesity on NAFLD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]