Lean fatty liver disease linked to higher early death risk
Lean status was linked to higher mortality in the first decade (hazard ratio, a relative risk measure, 1.68), but not clearly afterward.
Limit: The abstract does not define lean status or identify the comparison group
Edited by Boris Djordjevic · AgingResearch.News
Researchers conducted an observational study of 3,568 participants with metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease, a condition involving liver fat and metabolic problems. They analyzed data from the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, with a median follow-up of 27.7 years.
Lean status was associated with higher mortality from any cause during the first 10 years. The adjusted hazard ratio, a relative measure of death risk over time, was 1.68. The association was not evident after 10 years. Lean status was not clearly associated with deaths from cardiovascular disease in either period. The early mortality association was particularly evident in men aged 60 or older.
Why it matters
The study addresses how body size relates to survival with this liver condition, including among men aged 60 or older.
Caveats
This observational study cannot establish that leanness caused earlier deaths. The abstract did not define “lean” or specify the comparison group for the hazard ratios.
- Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease
- Lean metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease
- Body mass index
- FIB-4
- Humans
The paper
Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University
Journal of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Oct 25, 2026
