Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2016 Jun;150(8):1786-97.
doi: 10.1053/j.gastro.2016.02.043. Epub 2016 Feb 27.

Alcoholic Liver Disease in Asia, Europe, and North America

Suthat Liangpunsakul  1 , Paul Haber  2 , Geoffrey W McCaughan  3
Affiliations

Alcoholic Liver Disease in Asia, Europe, and North America

Suthat Liangpunsakul et al. Gastroenterology. 2016 Jun.

Abstract

Alcoholic liver diseases comprise a spectrum of clinical disorders and changes in liver tissue that can be detected by pathology analysis. These range from steatosis to more severe signs and symptoms of liver disease associated with inflammation, such as those observed in patients with alcoholic hepatitis or cirrhosis. Although the relationship between alcohol consumption and liver disease is well established, severe alcohol-related morbidities develop in only a minority of people who consume alcohol in excess. Inter-individual differences in susceptibility to the toxic effects of alcohol have been studied extensively-they include pattern of alcohol consumption, sex, environmental factors (such as diet), and genetic factors, which vary widely among different parts of the world. Alcoholic liver disease is becoming more common in many parts of Asia, but is decreasing in Western Europe. Treatment approaches, including availability of medications, models of care, and approach to transplantation, differ among regions.

Keywords: Alcoholic Liver Disease; Asia; Clinical Profiles; Europe; North America.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

CONFLICT OF INTERESTS: NONE

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Total adult per-capita consumption of pure alcohol in Asia, Europe, and North America (modified from ref 13)
Figure 2
Figure 2
Overall alcohol-attributable deaths caused by cirrhosis in different geographic regions (modified from ref 2)
Figure 3
Figure 3
WHO Global Strategy to Reduce Harmful us of alcohol (modified from ref 94)
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. World Health Organization. Management of substance abuse. http://www.who.int/substance_abuse/facts/alcohol/en/
    1. Rehm J, Samokhvalov AV, Shield KD. Global burden of alcoholic liver diseases. J Hepatol. 2013;59:160–168. - PubMed
    1. Teli MR, Day CP, Burt AD, Bennett MK, James OF. Determinants of progression to cirrhosis or fibrosis in pure alcoholic fatty liver. Lancet. 1995;346:987–990. - PubMed
    1. Lieber CS, JONES DP, DECARLI LM. EFFECTS OF PROLONGED ETHANOL INTAKE: PRODUCTION OF FATTY LIVER DESPITE ADEQUATE DIETS. J Clin Invest. 1965;44:1009–1021. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Chayanupatkul M, Liangpunsakul S. Alcoholic hepatitis: a comprehensive review of pathogenesis and treatment. World J Gastroenterol. 2014;20:6279–6286. - PMC - PubMed

Publication types