The Impact of Probiotic Supplementation on Liver Enzymes in Patients with Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease Attending the Family Medicine Clinic at Ain Shams University Hospitals

Abstract

Abstract Background Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a condition marked by the accumulation of fat (more than 5% of liver tissue) without the presence of alcohol abuse or other chronic liver ailments. NAFLD can lead to liver inflammation and advance to non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), fibrosis, cirrhosis, and, in severe cases, may contribute to the development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) Objective To assess the impact of probiotic supplementation, specifically lactobacillus, on liver enzymes (ALT & AST). Patients and Methods This study involved 50 participants (15 males and 35 females) with a body mass index equal to or greater than 25 and an age range of 18-60 years, all exhibiting evidence of bright fatty liver in ultrasonography. Exclusion criteria comprised any signs of other chronic liver diseases, including viral hepatitis (B and C), autoimmune hepatitis, a history of alcohol consumption, diabetes mellitus (DM), statin therapy for cardiovascular disease (CVD), recent surgery, gastroenteritis, or diarrhea in the last 2 weeks. The participants were divided into two groups: a probiotic group consisting of 25 patients who received daily probiotics for 12 weeks along with diet and lifestyle modifications, and a standard treatment group of 25 patients who underwent diet and lifestyle modifications only. The study involved clinical assessments, laboratory evaluations, and abdominal ultrasound for all participants. Results The average age of the entire study sample was 46.48. No statistically significant differences were observed between the standard treatment group and the probiotic- treated group with respect to smoking, weight, and BMI. The probiotic-treated group exhibited a significant reduction in ALT and AST (P values 0.014 and 0.004, respectively), while the standard treatment group showed a smaller decrease in AST only (P value 0.025). Conclusion The findings of the present study indicate that short-term treatment with the probiotic resulted in improvements in ALT and AST levels in the probiotic group