TyHGB index linked to high cardiovascular risk in adults with fatty liver disease

A higher triglyceride-high-density lipoprotein-glucose-body index, or TyHGB, was associated with greater odds of being classified as having high risk of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) among 973 adults with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in a retrospective, single-center cross-sectional study. In the fully adjusted statistical model, each one-unit increase in TyHGB was associated with 21% higher odds of high ASCVD risk, while participants in the high-TyHGB group had 4.02 times the odds of those in the low-index group. The findings show an association rather than evidence that TyHGB causes cardiovascular disease or that it can reliably predict risk on its own.

The index was calculated from fasting triglyceride, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and glucose concentrations. Researchers also used receiver operating characteristic curve analysis to identify the TyHGB value that best classified participants as having high ASCVD risk. That cutoff was 8.44, but its discriminatory performance was modest: the area under the curve was 0.607, with a 95% confidence interval of 0.540–0.673. The result indicates limited ability to distinguish high-risk from lower-risk participants when TyHGB is used alone, underscoring that the observed association does not amount to strong standalone prediction.

With TyHGB treated as a continuous variable, the fully adjusted odds ratio for high ASCVD risk was 1.21 per unit increase, with a 95% confidence interval of 1.08–1.35 and P<0.001. When the index was divided at the ROC-derived cutoff, the high-versus-low comparison produced an odds ratio of 4.02, with a 95% confidence interval of 2.13–7.56 and P<0.001. These estimates describe odds within this study population at a single assessment; they do not establish the direction of causality, changes over time, or the effect of changing TyHGB. The supplied results report the significant association for the fully adjusted model rather than describing it as independently present in every sequential adjustment model.

Restricted cubic spline analysis suggested a linear dose-response relationship between TyHGB and high ASCVD risk. The test for nonlinearity returned P=0.053, meaning the study did not detect statistically significant departure from a linear pattern at the reported threshold. The result is consistent with progressively greater odds of high-risk classification across higher index values, although the cross-sectional design cannot show whether increasing the index would be followed by a change in cardiovascular risk. It also does not establish that TyHGB is a useful measure for monitoring future risk or for guiding clinical decisions.

Subgroup analyses indicated that the strength of the association varied according to two clinical characteristics. Interaction tests were significant for alcohol use, with P=0.024, and for hypertension, with P=0.041, indicating effect modification by these factors in the study analyses. The source does not establish whether TyHGB would be useful for screening or clinical decision-making, or whether the relationship applies beyond similar populations. The study’s principal contribution is the observed association in a retrospective, single-center cross-sectional analysis of adults with NAFLD, combined with evidence that the index alone distinguishes ASCVD risk categories only weakly. Because the design assesses participants at one point in time and the reported association is observational, the findings should not be interpreted as proof that changing the index would change cardiovascular outcomes. Larger prospective studies would be needed to assess whether the relationship persists over time, applies in broader populations, or provides useful information beyond other cardiovascular risk measures.

Subject of Research: Association between the TyHGB index and high atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease risk in adults with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease

Article Title: Association between the TyHGB index and the high risk of ASCVD in Chinese patients with NAFLD: a cross‑sectional study

Article References: Xiong, L., & Zhuang, H. (2026). Association between the TyHGB index and the high risk of ASCVD in Chinese patients with NAFLD: a cross‑sectional study. BMC Endocrine Disorders. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12902-026-02678-0

Image Credits: AI Generated

DOI: 10.1186/s12902-026-02678-0

Keywords: TyHGB index, NAFLD, ASCVD risk, cardiovascular disease, triglycerides, glucose, cross-sectional study, odds ratio, subgroup analysis, Association, between, TyHGB