Does metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease increase the risk of chronic kidney disease? A meta-analysis of cohort studies

Metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) has been used to characterize patients with fatty liver and metabolic dysfunction. The association between MAFLD and chronic kidney disease (CKD) remains undefined. We present high-quality evidence obtained from cohort studies examining if MAFLD leads to an increased risk of CKD.

PubMed, CENTRAL, Embase, Scopus, and Web of Science were searched from the earliest possible date to 17th May 2024 for cohort studies examining the link between MAFLD and CKD.

Eight studies with nine cohorts were included. Pooled analysis of all nine cohorts showed that MAFLD was an independent predictor of CKD (HR: 1.38 95% CI: 1.24, 1.53 I² = 95%). No change in results was noted on sensitivity analysis. We also noted no change in the significance of effect size on subgroup analysis based on study design (prospective or retrospective), country of origin (China, Korea, Japan, or UK), the incidence of CKD in the cohort (> 10% or ≤ 10%) and if the study adjusted for cardiovascular disease, diabetes, hypertension, and smoking status. Further, meta-analysis showed that MAFLD was still a risk factor for CKD in men (HR: 1.38 95% CI: 1.22, 1.56 I² = 86%), women (HR: 1.51 95% CI: 1.25, 1.82 I² = 87%), overweight (HR: 1.41 95% CI: 1.20, 1.66 I² = 89%) and non-overweight cohorts (HR: 1.35 95% CI: 1.20, 1.53 I² = 9%).

MAFLD is an independent predictor of CKD. The association seems persistent irrespective of sex, body mass index, and other CKD risk factors.