Objectives:

There are many gastrointestinal (GI) and hepatic diseases for which obesity is the direct cause (eg, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease) or is a significant risk factor, such as reflux esophagitis and gallstones. In our study; we aimed to investigate the incidence of GI diseases in pediatric patients with obesity and hepatosteatosis and to evaluate the efficacy of diagnostic investigations for etiology in patients with hepatosteatosis and/or elevated transaminases.

Materials and Methods:

This study was retrospectively conducted in 201 pediatric patients who were diagnosed with obesity [body mass index (BMI) ≥95%] and hepatosteatosis between January and December 2018.

Results:

A total of 201 [55.2% (n=111) male] patients with a mean age of 12.9±3.4 years were included in the study. The mean BMI of the patients was 29.8 and the BMI standard deviation score was 2.69. Twenty-three (11.4%) of the patients had gastro esophageal reflux disease, 23 (11.4%) had constipation and 13 (6.5%) had functional abdominal pain and/or irritable bowel syndrome and 13 (6.5%) had symptoms compatible with gastritis. One of the patients with hepatosteatosis and elevated transaminases was diagnosed with autoimmune hepatitis and the other was diagnosed with alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency.

Conclusion:

Consequently, obesity and obesity-related morbidities, which are increasing in the world and in our country, are an important health problem since childhood. GI diseases are quite common in obese patients. Other treatable causes of liver diseases should be evaluated in the follow-up of obese patients. In these patients, pediatric gastroenterology follow-up is absolutely necessary for multidisciplinary obesity management.

Keywords: Obesity, Fatty Liver Disease, Childhood