Open AccessIncreased Pancreatic Echogenicity with US: Relationship to Glycemic Progression and Incident Diabetes
Author(s) -
ChiSheng Hung,
PingHuei Tseng,
Chia–Hung Tu,
Chien-Chuan Chen,
WeiChih Liao,
YiChia Lee,
HanMo Chiu,
HungJu Lin,
Wei-Shiung Yang,
Ming-Fong Chen,
MingShiang Wu
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
radiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.118
H-Index - 295
eISSN - 1527-1315
pISSN - 0033-8419
DOI - 10.1148/radiol.2018170331
Subject(s) - medicine , interquartile range , hazard ratio , diabetes mellitus , glycemic , confidence interval , type 2 diabetes , prediabetes , odds ratio , gastroenterology , endocrinology
Purpose To evaluate the association between increased pancreatic echogenicity (IPE) and the risk of glycemic progression and incident diabetes. Materials and Methods This retrospective study was approved by the institutional review board, with waiver of informed consent. Consecutive individuals who had undergone abdominal ultrasonography as part of a health examination at a tertiary hospital between January 2005 and December 2011 were included. IPE was defined as increased echogenicity of the pancreas compared with that of the left lobe of liver. Glycemic progression was defined as the development of new prediabetes or diabetes in normoglycemic participants or as new diabetes in prediabetic participants during the follow-up period (median, 3.17 years; interquartile range, 2.01-4.67 years). The occurrence of incident diabetes, defined as a new diagnosis of diabetes during follow-up, was also analyzed. Results Mean age of the 32 346 participants was 50.4 years ± 12.2, and 48% (15 489 of 32 346) were female. The prevalence of IPE and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) was 8.4% (2720 of 32 346) and 41.4% (13 389 of 32 346), respectively. A total of 8856 participants were included in the follow-up analysis. During the 29 819.2 person-years of follow-up, 1217 (13.7%) and 449 (5.1%) of the 8856 participants developed glycemic progression and new diabetes, respectively. IPE was associated with more glycemic progression (hazard ratio, 1.54; 95% confidence interval: 1.23, 1.92; P < .001) and incident diabetes (hazard ratio, 1.49; 95% confidence interval: 1.05, 2.11; P = .024) after adjustment for confounders, HbA 1c concentration, and NAFLD. Conclusion Increased pancreatic echogenicity is associated with deteriorating glycemic parameters and higher risk of glycemic progression and incident diabetes, independent of HbA 1c concentration and NAFLD. © RSNA, 2018 Online supplemental material is available for this article.