@article{3168906,
    title = "Epicardial Fat in Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease: Properties and
Relationships With Metabolic Factors, Cardiac Structure, and Cardiac
Function",
    author = "Psychari, Stavroula N. and Rekleiti, Nectaria and Papaioannou, Nikolaos and and Varhalama, Evangelia and Drakoulis, Christos and Apostolou, Thomas and S. and Iliodromitis, Efstathios K.",
    journal = "International Angiology",
    year = "2016",
    volume = "67",
    number = "1",
    pages = "41-48",
    publisher = "SAGE Publications Inc.",
    issn = "0392-9590",
    doi = "10.1177/0003319715576672",
    keywords = "epicardial fat; NAFLD; fatty liver; metabolic syndrome",
    abstract = "Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is closely related to insulin
resistance and the metabolic syndrome and might be an important
cardiovascular (CV) risk factor. Epicardial adipose tissue (EAT) has
been implicated in the pathogenesis of obesity-related CV disease. In an
NAFLD population, we investigated EAT thickness and its possible
relations to NAFLD and cardiac structure and function. This was an
observational study of 57 patients with NAFLD and 48 age-matched
controls. Patients with NAFLD had significantly higher body mass index
(P < .0001), waist circumference (P < .0001), and high-sensitivity
C-reactive protein (P = .005), whereas high-density lipoprotein
cholesterol (P = .01) and adiponectin (P = .005) levels were
significantly lower. The EAT was not thicker in NAFLD but was positively
related to indices of impaired glucose tolerance and inflammation, with
diabetes being an independent predictor of EAT thickness (b* = 0.29, P
= .04). No relations were found between EAT and cardiac structure and
function. In conclusion, this study confirms a pathologic phenotype of
NAFLD. Epicardial fat was not significantly related to NAFLD per se, but
diabetes, glucose metabolism, and inflammation were closely related to
its thickness."
}