Bariatric surgery or gastric sleeve surgery approache is found highly effective for reducing nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, emphasised in a study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine.
The trial included 100 patients in Norway with type 2 diabetes and obesity who were randomly assigned to undergo either gastric bypass or gastric sleeve surgery.
Both procedures led to substantial reduction in hepatic steatosis at 5 weeks and an almost complete clearance of liver fat 1 year after surgery.
Investigators previously showed that Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) was superior to sleeve gastrectomy for type 2 diabetes remission.
All patients in the RYGB group and 94% in the sleeve gastrectomy group had no or low-grade steatosis.
The liver fibrosis findings were less conclusive.
Enhanced liver fibrosis test scores increased for 69% of patients and 1 in 5 patients progressed to a higher grade of fibrosis.
Further research is warranted on long-term fibrosis progression or regression.
The researchers will observe participants for an additional 5 years.
Source: American Medical Association.