Detection of Non–Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease Using Infrared Thermal Camera

Abstract

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), characterized by fat accumulation in the liver is linked to metabolic factors. The limitations of liver biopsy necessitate non-invasive diagnostic methods. This study explores the potential of infrared thermal imaging in screening the NAFLD. Individuals with and without NAFLD underwent thermal imaging. Our work illustrates the effectiveness of this approach by employing the FLIR C3 camera for detailed thermal image capture and analysis. The skewness value of the control group ranged from +5 to -5, indicating a symmetrical distribution of thermal data. In contrast, the NAFLD group showed a skewness of -0.4589, suggesting an asymmetrical distribution. However, the kurtosis value of the NAFLD group was 0.2044, which was within the range of +3 to -3, similar to the control group. This indicates comparable levels of data concentration around the average temperature in both groups. This study suggests the potential of this non-invasive approach for detecting NAFLD. This could be a suitable adjunct tool to the invasive method of liver biopsy.