BACKGROUND: Fatty liver is a common chronic liver disease worldwide. It is associated with an increasing morbidity in China in recent years. The aim of this study was to analyze the effect of drinking alcohol on the hemoglobin and biochemical values of patients with fatty liver.
METHODS: We investigated the clinical and laboratory data of 669 patients with fatty liver. Of the 669 patients, 166 consumed alcohol more than 60 g per week for at least 2 years, and 503 did not have a history of long-term alcohol consumption. We further analyzed the relationship between alcohol consumption and clinical characteristics of these patients.
RESULTS: The values of aspartate transaminase (AST), gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase (GGT), and hemoglobin in the long-term consumption group were significantly higher than those in the non long-term consumption group (P<0.05). In the patients without long-term alcohol consumption, the values of GGT and hemoglobin in patients with light alcohol consumption were significantly higher than those in non alcohol consumers (P<0.05).
CONCLUSION: Alcohol consumption is associated with significantly increased values of AST, GGT, and hemoglobin in patients with fatty liver, suggesting their potential roles in hepatic steatosis.