Sonographic evaluation of diaphragm thickness in pediatric patients with steatotic liver disease

Objective The most common liver disease in children is metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease. We expect increased diaphragm thickness in pediatric patients with hepatosteatosis. We aimed to compare diaphragm thickness in children with hepatosteatosis with the control group and discuss the results in the light of current literature. Metods The study included 56 metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease and 78 healthy controls. The diaphragm measurement of the patient and control groups was performed from the anterior caudal part of the diaphragm at the end of expiration from the right and left sides. Result Diaphragm thickness, BMI, weight and height Z scores were significantly thicker in the group with fatty liver. We found a significant positive correlation between the stages of fatty liver and anthropometric measurement Z score values with diaphragm thickness. Conclusion In this study, it was found that diaphragm thickness was thicker in pediatric patients with hepatosteatosis than in healthy individuals and was positively correlated with anthropometric measurements. However, further studies are needed to evaluate diaphragm muscle function.