There is a bidirectional association between nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and psoriasis, especially for patients younger than 40 years, according to a study published online Feb. 16 in Frontiers in Immunology .

Shuo-Yan Gau, from Chung Shan Medical University in Taichung, Taiwan, and colleagues retrieved data from Taiwan's National Health Insurance Research Database to examine the bidirectional association between NAFLD and psoriasis. Patients with new-onset NAFLD and psoriasis were enrolled in two cohorts; propensity score-matched controls with no NAFLD or psoriasis were included for each comparison cohort.

The researchers observed a significantly increased risk for developing psoriasis for patients with new-onset NAFLD (hazard ratio, 1.07), while for younger patients with NAFLD, the risk was increased 1.3-fold. For new-onset psoriasis patients, the risk for developing NAFLD in the future was increased 1.28-fold compared with those without psoriasis; the risk was higher for patients in younger psoriasis subgroups younger than age 40 years versus those in older subgroups (adjusted hazard ratio, 1.55).

"Future studies should consider the mechanism influencing the pathogenesis and correlation between NAFLD and psoriasis and focus on the difference between different psoriasis severity subgroups and to what extent the severity difference would affect the bidirectional association," the authors write.

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