A cross-sectional study of the public health response to non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in Europe

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a growing challenge to global public health. It is defined as the increased accumulation of hepatic triglyceride (>5%) in the absence of excessive alcohol consumption or other causes of liver disease. The NAFLD spectrum encompasses steatosis (non-alcoholic fatty liver, NAFL) and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), an inflammatory form of the condition marked by the presence of hepatocyte damage and progressive fibrosis that may lead to cirrhosis.[1,2] Although NAFLD may occur in patients with normal weight, it is closely associated with the presence of the metabolic syndrome, and therefore with obesity, type 2 diabetes mellitus, hypertension and dyslipidaemia.

Source: Journal of Hepatology - September 9, 2019 Category: Gastroenterology Authors: Jeffrey V. Lazarus, Mattias Ekstedt, Giulio Marchesini, Jillian Mullen, Katja Novak, Juan M Peric às, Elena Roel, Manuel Romero-Gómez, Vlad Ratziu, Frank Tacke, Helena Cortez-Pinto, Quentin M. Anstee, on behalf of the EASL International Liver Foundation Source Type: research