Cardiovascular Risk and Hepatic Steatosis in Patients Treated at A Level 2 Hospital

Abstract

Background: Hepatic steatosis, currently recognized as a metabolic liver disease, is linked to the global epidemic of obesity, insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome, and cardiovascular disorders. Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death worldwide. From a pathophysiological perspective, the accumulation of intrahepatic lipids is associated with chronic low-grade inflammation, oxidative stress, endothelial dysfunction, and activation for the development of atherosclerosis. These alterations result in an increased risk of ischemic heart disease and cardiovascular disease. Imaging plays a role in the non-invasive detection of hepatic steatosis in its different stages using abdominal ultrasound and in the evaluation of cardiovascular risk markers using cardiac computed tomography, as well as in the identification of atherosclerotic calcifications of the coronary arteries.

General objective: To determine the association between cardiovascular risk and the degree of hepatic steatosis in patients treated at HGRO No 1.

Material and methods: This is a cross-sectional, observational, prospective, and analytical study. Non-random quota sampling was used. Frequencies and percentages were obtained for qualitative variables, and measures of central tendency and dispersion were obtained for quantitative variables. The chi- ^{square test was used for inferential statistics} , achieving statistical significance with a p-value <0.05. The sample consisted of 250 patients with hepatic steatosis of varying degrees, who underwent cardiac tomography between May 2025 and July 2025 at HGRO 01.

Results: This study included 250 patients, of whom 139 (56.6%) were women. The mean age was 50.02 years. Obesity was the predominant BMI in 89 patients (35.6%). Hypertension and diabetes mellitus were found in 87 patients (34.8%) and 85 patients (34%), respectively. Mild hepatic steatosis was the most prevalent, found in 98 patients (39.3%) , and very low cardiovascular risk was the most common, found in 96 patients (38.4%), with a statistically significant association ( X² ⁼ 12.82, p = 0.046).

Conclusions: Cardiovascular risk is directly associated with the degree of hepatic steatosis, as a higher degree of hepatic steatosis was associated with a greater cardiovascular risk. Therefore, the alternative hypothesis can be confirmed, and the null hypothesis rejected . A high frequency of overweight and obesity was found. Furthermore, it can be concluded that diabetes mellitus and hypertension are important factors in this pathology.