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News
Subclinical liver disease — even without a formal diagnosis — may significantly raise cardiovascular risk, according to a large UK Biobank study. Participants with high scores across three liver markers (steatosis, fibrosis, and functional impairment) had more than double the risk of developing heart disease. The findings suggest routine liver biomarkers could help flag high-risk patients that traditional cardiovascular screening misses.
You don't need a liver disease diagnosis for your liver to be quietly raising your heart disease risk. A large study of over 318,000 UK Biobank participants found that people with elevated markers of liver fat, scarring, and functional decline — but no clinical liver disease — faced substantially higher odds of developing cardiovascular disease (CVD) over a median 14-year follow-up.
Researchers assessed three noninvasive liver indices: the fatty liver index (FLI) for fat accumulation, the fibrosis-4 index (FIB-4) for scarring, and the albumin-bilirubin (ALBI) score for liver function. When all three were in the highest quartile, the risk of CVD more than doubled compared to those with none elevated. Notably, FLI was a stronger predictor in women, while FIB-4 and ALBI were more predictive in men.
By the Numbers:
Why it matters: These findings introduce a "liver-heart axis" into cardiovascular risk prediction. Integrating simple, noninvasive liver biomarkers into routine screening could help identify high-risk individuals who slip through the cracks of traditional cardiovascular assessments.
