Comparison of the demographics and management of patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) attending gastroenterology, hepatology and a specialist NAFLD clinic
| Domain | Clinic | Total (%) | p value | ||
| Gastroenterology (%) n=68 | Hepatology (%) n=59 | NAFLD clinic (%) n=20 | |||
| Patient characteristics | |||||
| Sex (% male) | 30 (44%) | 32 (54%) | 7 (35%) | 69 (47%) | – |
| Diabetes % | 34 (50%) | 31 (52%) | 13 (65%) | 78 (53%) | – |
| Obesity (BMI >30 kg/m2) | 35 (52%) | 43 (73%) | 17 (85%) | 95 (65%) | – |
| Cirrhosis % | 27 (40%) | 24 (41%) | 6 (30%) | 57 (39%) | – |
| Liver biopsy undertaken | 19 (28%) | 26 (44%) | 12 (60%) | 57 (39%) | – |
| Interventions | |||||
| Alcohol use documented* | 57 (85%) | 54 (92%) | 20 (100%) | 131 (90%) | 0.121 |
| Liver imaging (Ultrasound scan)* | 64 (96%) | 58 (98%) | 20 (100%) | 142 (97%) | 0.519 |
| Non-invasive staging* | 39 (57%) | 40 (68%) | 20 (100%) | 99 (67%) | 0.001 |
| Staging within 3 years* | 29 (45%) | 36 (67%) | 17 (85%) | 82 (59%) | 0.003 |
| Blood pressure checked* | 38 (56%) | 36 (61%) | 20 (100%) | 94 (65%) | 0.001 |
| Lipids tested* | 43 (64%) | 38 (64%) | 20 (100%) | 101 (69%) | 0.005 |
| Blood sugar addressed† | 54 (79%) | 40 (68%) | 20 (100%) | 114 (78%) | 0.004 |
| BMI documented at review appointment* | 47 (70%) | 35 (60%) | 4 (20%)‡ | 86 (59%) | <0.001 |
| Waist circumference documented† | 0 (0%) | 1 (2%) | 20 (100%) | 21 (14%) | <0.001 |
| Weight loss advice documented† | 46 (68%) | 51 (86%) | 19 (95%) | 116 (79%) | 0.006 |
| Documented advice to lose ≥10% body weight† | 6 (9%) | 4 (7%) | 5 (25%) | 15 (10%) | 0.084 |
| Statin prescribed* | 35 (56%) | 31 (61%) | 16 (80%) | 82 (61%) | 0.153 |
| Referred to structured lifestyle programme† | 6 (9%) | 4 (7%) | 11 (55%) | 21 (15%) | <0.001 |
*Pearson χ2 test was used.
†Fisher’s exact test was used.
‡Although body mass index (BMI) not formally documented, height and weight were documented for all patients.