Evidence map›Paper›PMID 35328955›Full record

ArticleInternational journal of environmental research and public health2022

Risk of Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease Is Associated with Urinary Phthalate Metabolites Levels in Adults with Subclinical Hypothyroidism: Korean National Environmental Health Survey (KoNEHS) 2012-2014.

Eun-Jung Yang, Byung-Sun Choi, Yun-Jung Yang

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in International journal of environmental research and public health, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
6citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
1.3field-weighted citation impact, top 23% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

6 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 12 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Environmental Endocrine-Disrupting Chemicals and Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatotic Liver Disease.Liver international : official journal of the International Association for the Study of the Liver · 2026
    Pooled it
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  4. Review
  5. Review
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.

Eun-Jung YangDepartment of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul 03722, Korea.
Byung-Sun ChoiDepartment of Preventive Medicine, College of Medicine, Chung-Ang University, Seoul 06974, Korea.
Yun-Jung YangDepartment of Convergence Science, College of Medicine, Catholic Kwandong University International St. Mary's Hospital, Incheon 22711, Korea.ORCID 0000-0001-5461-1534
Catholic Kwandong University International St. Mary's Hospital · KRChung-Ang University · KRYonsei University · KR

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a condition of excess accumulation of fats in the liver. Thyroid dysfunction is commonly observed in adult populations with NAFLD. In subjects with thyroid dysfunction, phthalates, which are chemical compounds widely used to increase the flexibility of various plastic products, may increase the risk of NAFLD prevalence. Therefore, our study aimed to evaluate the relationship between the levels of urinary phthalate metabolites and the risk of NAFLD stratified by the levels of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH). Data (n = 2308) were obtained from the Korean National Environmental Health Survey II (2012−2014). Using the hepatic steatosis index, participants were classified into non-NAFLD (<30) and NAFLD (>36) groups. Participants with euthyroidism were defined as 0.45−4.5 mIU/L for serum TSH and normal thyroxine (T4) levels (n = 2125). Subclinical hypothyroidism (SCH) was defined as a higher TSH level (4.5−10 mIU/L) with normal total T4 levels in the serum (n = 183). A multivariate analysis was performed to assess the association of the urinary phthalate concentration with the risk of NAFLD after stratification based on the thyroid hormone levels. The levels of phthalate metabolites in urine were not significantly associated with NAFLD in adults with euthyroidism. However, a significant increased risk of NAFLD in those with SCH was observed in the fourth quartile of mono (2-ethyl-5-hydroxyhexyl) phthalate (odds ratio (OR) 13.59, 95% confidence interval (CI) 12.13−86.44), mono (2-ethyl-5-oxohexyl) phthalate (OR 8.55, 95% CI 1.20−60.53), mono-(2-ethyl-5-carboxypentyl) phthalate (OR 9.06, 95% CI 1.78−45.96), and mono-benzyl phthalate (OR 6.05, 95% CI 1.62−22.54) compared to those of the lowest quartile after being adjusted with covariates. In conclusion, the levels of phthalate metabolites in urine are positively associated with NAFLD in adults with SCH. More experimental studies are needed to clarify the risk of NAFLD caused by phthalate exposure in cases with poor thyroid function.

Indexed as

Environmental PollutantsHypothyroidismNon-alcoholic Fatty Liver DiseasePhthalic AcidsAdultEnvironmental ExposureEnvironmental HealthHumansRepublic of KoreaThyrotropinEnvironmental Pollutantsphthalic acidPhthalic AcidsThyrotropinKorean National Environmental Health Surveynonalcoholic liver diseasephthalatessubclinical hypothyroidism

Identifiers

PMID35328955
PMCPMC8949399
OpenAlexW4220943695

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.