The diagnosis of steatosis was based on the results of
ultrasonography of the upper abdomen, performed at the
Hospital Universitário Alcides Carneiro (HUAC), by a single
radiologist blinded to clinical data and laboratory test
results. The equipment used was a MedisonSonoAce Prime
8000EX, with a multifrequency convex transducer of 5 MHz.
Alterations in liver parenchyma were classified as normal,
mild, moderate, and severe diffuse steatosis.10 This
classification uses as parameters the liver echogenicity in
comparison with the renal cortex, the echo penetration
intensity in the liver parenchyma, the diaphragm visibility,
and the echogenicity of the liver vascular structures.