Resistance to ketosis in moderately obese patients: influence of fatty liver.

To elucidate whether the presence of fatty liver influences ketogenesis in obesity, the metabolic and hormonal changes in basal and low-dose epinephrine (EPI)-stimulated states were studied in 12 obese patients (OB) with normal glucose tolerance, consisting of 6 without fatty liver (OBN) and 6 with fatty liver (OBF). In the basal state, the total ketone body (TKB) concentration and the TKB to free fatty acid (FFA) ratio were significantly (p < 0.01) lower in the OBF than in the OBN group, despite elevated, but comparable, FFA levels in both groups. The basal FFA level and the TKB/FFA ratio correlated with the degree of fatty liver (p < 0.05-0.01). EPI infusion resulted in accelerated lipolysis and diminished FFA-induced ketogenesis, similar to the findings of the basal data. These results suggest that fatty liver per se is related to diminished FFA-induced ketogenesis, leading to resistance to ketosis in obesity.