EFFECT OF INCREASING BMI ON ENZYMES USED FOR ASSESSMENT OF LIVER FUNCTION

Rangwala Tasneem*, Bafna Angoorbala, Maheshwari R.S, Ajmera Shweta and Batham Anil Rai

ABSTRACT

WHO: Expert Committee Recommended that obesity is emerging as worldwide epidemic. Present study describes the effect of increasing Body Mass Index (BMI) on enzymes used for assessing liver function. This study is based on 50 healthy and 190 obese subjects of age group 20-50 years. Obese subjects were selected on the basis of BMI and were divided into three categories according to BMI viz overweight, obese and morbid obese. These were further divided on the basis of gender. Serum Alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and Aspartate aminotransferase (AST) level were estimated. It was observed that serum ALT level of control male was 26.67+6.5IU/L and of control female was 22.73+7.5 IU/L. Serum ALT level in overweight, obese and morbid obese males were 32.73+13.2 (p value<0.10), 1.45+13.5 (p value<0.0005) and 72.19+14.05 IU/L (p value<0.0005) respectively and in overweight, obese and morbid obese females were 43.47+18.33 (p value<0.005), 44.59+12.31 (p value<0.0005) and 72.96+11.2 IU/L (p value<0.0005). Serum AST level in control, overweight, obese and morbid obese males were 12.27+8.17, 15.97+7.46 (p value<0.10), 17.1+8.19 (p value<0.10) and 27.51+7.58IU/L (p value<0.0005) and in females were 18.93+8.65, 20.56+9.52 (p value<0.10), 25.57+12.57 (p value<0.10) and 45.45+7.11IU/L (p value<0.0005) respectively. Thus in females, with increase in BMI the level of ALT also increase eventually. Similarly males also show increased ALT level with increase in BMI. However in overweight males rise in ALT level is not significant. While comparing the AST level it was found that significant variation occur only in morbid obese males and females, which may be due to liver dysfunction.

Keywords: Obesity, Overweight, Morbid Obese, Alanine Aminotransferase, Aspartate Aminotransferase.