The association between pancreas steatosis and metabolic syndrome: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Pancreas steatosis is the description of fat accumulation in the pancreatic gland. The prevalence and development mechanisms of pancreatic steatosis in patients with metabolic disorders still remain unclear. The aim of this study is to systematically review the association between pancreatic steatosis and metabolic co-morbidities.

We performed a systematic search strategy using three electronic databases (MEDLINE, Scopus, and Embase) for relevant studies concerning the associations of pancreatic steatosis with metabolic syndrome (MetS) and its clinical relevance from inception until 30 September 2018.

One thousand three hundred fifty one references were identified in the initial search, and a total of 13 studies involving 49 329 subjects were included. This analyses elucidated the presence of non-alcoholic fatty pancreas disease (NAFPD) and was associated with a significant increased risk of metabolic syndrome (RR = 2.25; 95% CI, 2.00-2.53; P < 0.0001; I²  = 42.8%; eight studies included), hypertension (RR = 1.43; 95% CI, 1.08-1.90; P = 0.013; I²  = 94.7%; nine studies included), non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) (RR = 2.49; 95% CI, 2.06-3.02; P < 0.0001; I²  = 96.9%; nine studies included), diabetes mellitus (RR = 1.99; 95% CI, 1.18-3.35; P = 0.01; I²  = 97.6%; 10 studies included), and central obesity (RR = 1.91; 95% CI, 1.67-2.19; P < 0.0001; I²  = 95.9%; six studies included). The association between NAFPD and hyperlipidaemia was not statistically significant (RR = 1.33; 95% CI, 0.82-2.17; P = 0.249; I²  = 97%; five studies included).

The existing evidence indicates that NAFPD is significantly associated with an increased risk of metabolic syndrome and its components. Well-designed prospective cohort studies between pancreatic steatosis and MetS are needed to elaborate the causality in the future.