Association between hypertension and fatty liver index in patients undergoing coronary computed tomography...

Fatty Liver Index (FLI) is associated with hypertension (HTN) in individuals undergoing general health screening and patients with hepatic steatosis; however, whether it is associated with HTN in patients undergoing coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA) remains unclear. Therefore, to investigate this association, we conducted a cross-sectional study involving 1 173 patients with clinically suspected coronary artery disease. The primary outcomes of interest were FLI values and HTN prevalence. The mean FLI was 36.3 ± 25.8. Patients with HTN had a significantly higher FLI than those without HTN (39.1 ± 26.0 vs. 30.9 ± 24.7; P < 0.001). FLI was divided into three value-based categories, lower, intermediate, and higher; the HTN prevalence among them was 59.2%, 69.0%, and 75.6%, respectively, showing a significant linear trend (P < 0.001). A higher FLI was independently associated with HTN in a dose-response manner. Compared with the lower FLI group, the odds of HTN were greater in the intermediate (odds ratio [OR]: 1.58, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.17-2.14, P = 0.003) and higher groups (OR: 2.59, 95% CI: 1.79-3.76, P < 0.001). Results were consistent in a sensitivity model treating FLI as continuous, each 10-unit increase in FLI was associated with 15.6% higher odds of HTN (OR: 1.16, 95% CI: 1.10-1.22, P < 0.001). Thus, FLI may serve as a valuable diagnostic indicator of HTN in patients undergoing CCTA, and incorporation of FLI assessment into routine CCTA evaluation protocols should be considered for more comprehensive cardiovascular risk assessment.