Multidisciplinary intensive lifestyle intervention improves markers of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in patients with type 1 diabetes and obesity: a retrospective matched-cohort study

Abstract

Abstract Background The prevalence of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is increasing among patients with type 1 diabetes (T1D) paralleling the increasing prevalence of obesity among this population. However, little is known about the impact of intensive lifestyle intervention (ILI) on NAFLD in patients with T1D. Methods Using Hepatic Steatosis Index (HSI), a noninvasive surrogate predictor of NAFLD, we retrospectively evaluated 88 adult patients with T1D and obesity after one year of participating in a 12-week ILI program in real-world clinical practice. Using the NAFLD guidelines of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD), we excluded 11 participants. We matched the remaining ILI cohort (age 43 ± 12 years, females 65%, diabetes duration 22 ± 9 years, A1C 8.2 ± 0.9%, body weight 101 ± 17 kg, BMI 35.3 ± 4.9 kg/m2) in 1:1 ratio with a similar cohort of patients with T1D and obesity who received standard diabetes care (SC) at the same practice and during the same period. Matching criteria included: sex, age, BMI, A1C and duration of T1D. HSI [8 + ALT/AST + BMI (+ 2 if female, + 2 if T2D)] was calculated at baseline and after 12 months of intervention. Results At baseline, HSI was similar between the two cohorts (46.2 ± 6.1 in the ILI cohort and 44.9 ± 5.7 in the SC cohort). After 12 months, the ILI group lost an average of 5.6 ± 2.7 kg (5.8%, p < 0.05) while the SC group maintained their baseline body weight (p < 0.001 between groups). HSI decreased significantly from baseline in the ILI group (-2.7 ± 1.1, p = 0.01), but did not change in the SC group (0.6 ± 0.9, p = 0.53, p < 0.001 between groups). Percentage of patients with high likelihood of NAFLD diagnosis decreased from 100% at baseline to 88.3% in the ILI group, and was 10.4% less compared to SC (p < 0.01). Total daily insulin dose decreased in the ILI cohort compared to the SC cohort (-6.1 ± 4.2 versus 1.34 ± 4.3 units/day, p < 0.01). Conclusions Twelve weeks of ILI improved HSI and decreased total daily insulin requirements in patients with T1D and obesity at one year. Short-term ILI should be implemented in the management of NAFLD for obese patients with type 1 diabetes.