Lu NL, Lam HT, Vo TD. Prevalence of metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease among health check-up attendees: A retrospective study conducted in Vietnam. World J Gastroenterol 2025; 31(37): 110797 [DOI: 10.3748/wjg.v31.i37.110797]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Thong Duy Vo, MD, PhD, Associate Professor, Dean, Department of Gastroenterology, University Medical Center Ho Chi Minh City, 215 Hong Bang Street, Cho Lon Ward, Ho Chi Minh 72714, Viet Nam. thong.vd@umc.edu.vn
Research Domain of This Article
Gastroenterology & Hepatology
Article-Type of This Article
Retrospective Study
Open-Access Policy of This Article
This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
World J Gastroenterol. Oct 7, 2025; 31(37): 110797 Published online Oct 7, 2025. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v31.i37.110797
Prevalence of metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease among health check-up attendees: A retrospective study conducted in Vietnam
Ngan Lam Lu, Huong Tu Lam, Thong Duy Vo
Ngan Lam Lu, Department of Health Care, Cho Ray Hospital, Ho Chi Minh 72714, Viet Nam
Huong Tu Lam, Thong Duy Vo, Department of Internal Medicine, School of Medicine, University of Medicine and Pharmacy at Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh 72714, Viet Nam
Huong Tu Lam, Department of Gastroenterology, Cho Ray Hospital, Ho Chi Minh 72714, Viet Nam
Thong Duy Vo, Department of Gastroenterology, University Medical Center Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh 72714, Viet Nam
Co-first authors: Ngan Lam Lu and Huong Tu Lam.
Author contributions: Lu NL and Lam HT prepared the initial draft of the manuscript and made equal contributions as co-first authors; Lu NL and Vo TD contributed to the study conception, design, data collection, and analysis; Lam HT and Vo TD were responsible for reviewing and editing the manuscript; Vo TD supervised the study and provided critical revision of the content; All authors reviewed and approved the final version of the manuscript.
Institutional review board statement: The study was approved by the Ethics Committee of the University of Medicine and Pharmacy at Ho Chi Minh City, No. 836/HDDD-DHYD.
Informed consent statement: Since this was a retrospective study, informed consent was waived.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.
Data sharing statement: No additional data are available.
Open Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Thong Duy Vo, MD, PhD, Associate Professor, Dean, Department of Gastroenterology, University Medical Center Ho Chi Minh City, 215 Hong Bang Street, Cho Lon Ward, Ho Chi Minh 72714, Viet Nam. thong.vd@umc.edu.vn
Received: June 16, 2025 Revised: July 4, 2025 Accepted: August 29, 2025 Published online: October 7, 2025 Processing time: 101 Days and 22 Hours
Abstract
BACKGROUND
Metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) is a recently proposed term that highlights the role of metabolic dysfunction in hepatic steatosis. It currently affects more than one-third of adults worldwide and is associated with liver fibrosis, hepatocellular carcinoma, cardiovascular disease, and chronic kidney disease. Given its high prevalence, asymptomatic progression, and revised definition, evaluating its epidemiology and risk profile remains an important public health priority.
AIM
To assess the prevalence and characteristics of MAFLD among Vietnamese individuals undergoing health check-ups.
METHODS
This retrospective study included 331 adults undergoing routine health check-ups at The Health Evaluation and Promotion Center, International University of Health and Welfare Center, Cho Ray Hospital, from June to October 2023. MAFLD was diagnosed based on the 2020 international expert consensus. Data collected included demographic, clinical, laboratory information, and metabolic risk factors from routine health check-up records. Descriptive statistics, χ2 tests, and t-tests/Mann-Whitney tests were applied as appropriate. Significance was defined as P < 0.05.
RESULTS
MAFLD was identified in 97 of 331 individuals (29.31%). Prevalence was significantly higher in men than women (44.51% vs 14.37%; P < 0.001). In females, prevalence increased sharply after age 50 (P = 0.008). According to body mass index groups, prevalence was 0% (underweight), 9.27% (normal), and 48.26% (overweight/obese). The MAFLD group had significantly higher rates of hypertension (19.59% vs 2.99%), dyslipidemia (98.96% vs 89.32%), prediabetes/diabetes (65.98% vs 28.20%), hyperuricemia (64.95% vs 31.19%), and metabolic syndrome (54.64% vs 7.69%) compared to the non-MAFLD group (all P < 0.001).
CONCLUSION
MAFLD is prevalent in Vietnamese adults undergoing health screening. It is strongly associated with sex, age, body mass index, and metabolic disorders, indicating the importance of early detection and integrated management.
Core Tip: This study investigated the prevalence and associated factors of metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) in Vietnamese adults undergoing routine health check-ups. It revealed a high prevalence and significant associations with sex, age, body mass index, and multiple metabolic disorders. These findings highlight the need for early detection and targeted interventions in general populations and support the application of the new MAFLD diagnostic criteria in clinical practice.
