Hepatic left lobe volume is a sensitive index of metabolic improvement in obese women after gastric banding

Background: Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease is a common finding in obese subjects. Increasing evidence has been provided suggesting that it represents the hepatic component of the metabolic syndrome. Objective: Aim of this longitudinal study was to evaluate the relationships between several anthropometric measures, including the hepatic left lobe volume (HLLV), and various indicators of the metabolic syndrome in a cohort of severely obese women before and after laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (LAGB). Study design and results: Seventy-five obese women (mean age 45 +/- 10 years and body mass index (BMI) 42.5 +/- 4.8 kgm(-2)) underwent LAGB and completed an average (+/- s.d.) post-surgical follow-up of 24 +/- 6 months. Determination of HLLV, subcutaneous and intra-abdominal fat (IAF) was based on ultrasound. The principal component statistical analysis applied to pre-operative measurements, highlighted HLLV as a parameter that clustered with serum insulin, IAF, serum glucose and uric acid, along with triglycerides (TGs), alkaline phosphatase and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol. After LAGB, the average reduction of BMI was 23%, 12% for subcutaneous fat (SCF), 42% for HLLV and 40% for visceral fat. Among body weight, BMI, SCF, IAF and HLLV, reduction of the latter was an independent predictor of reduction of serum transaminases and g-Glutamyltransferase, glucose, insulin and TGs. Conclusions: In severely obese women: (i) HLLV is a sensitive indicator of ectopic fat deposition, clustering with parameters defining the metabolic syndrome; (ii) weight loss achieved by LAGB is associated with a reduction of liver volume as estimated by HLLV; (iii) among various anthropometric parameters measured, reduction of HLLV that follows LAGB represents the best single predictor of improvement of various cardiometabolic risk factors. International Journal of Obesity (2012) 36, 336-341; doi:10.1038/ijo.2011.243; published online 6 December 2011