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
. 2022 Jul;18(7):409-417.

Screening, Diagnosis, and Treatment of Alcohol-Related Liver Disease and Alcohol-Associated Hepatitis

Parita V Patel  1 , Steven L Flamm  1
Affiliations

Screening, Diagnosis, and Treatment of Alcohol-Related Liver Disease and Alcohol-Associated Hepatitis

Parita V Patel et al. Gastroenterol Hepatol (N Y). 2022 Jul.

Abstract

Alcohol-related liver disease is a spectrum of disease in which continued, significant alcohol use can cause progression from fatty changes in the liver to inflammation, fibrosis, and eventually cirrhosis. The rates of alcohol consumption, alcohol use disorder, and alcoholrelated liver disease have increased substantially during the past several years. However, the amount of alcohol consumption may not be the only risk factor for such progression of disease. Studies have found several other risk factors, including sex, race, and genetic predisposition, as possible culprits of worsening disease. As a result, clinicians must understand and implement screening tools for early diagnosis and remain up-to-date with the evolving nature of treatment options. This article reviews the diagnosis and treatment of alcohol use disorder as well as the pathophysiology, clinical presentation, and treatment of alcohol-related liver disease, including alcohol-associated hepatitis.

Keywords: Alcohol use disorder; alcohol-associated hepatitis; alcohol-related liver disease; liver transplantation.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Axley PD, Richardson CT, Singal AK. Epidemiology of alcohol consumption and societal burden of alcoholism and alcoholic liver disease. Clin Liver Dis. 2019;23(1):39–50. - PubMed
    1. Rehm J, Gmel GE, Sr, Gmel G et al. The relationship between different dimensions of alcohol use and the burden of disease—an update. Addiction. 2017;112(6):968–1001. - PMC - PubMed
    1. https://www.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/brochures-and-fact-sheets/alcohol... National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. Alcohol facts and statistics. Accessed December 19, 2021.
    1. Grant BF, Goldstein RB, Saha TD et al. Epidemiology of DSM-5 alcohol use disorder: results from the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions III. JAMA Psychiatry. 2015;72(8):757–766. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Crabb DW, Im GY, Szabo G, Mellinger JL, Lucey MR. Diagnosis and treatment of alcohol-associated liver diseases: 2019 practice guidance from the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases. Hepatology. 2020;71(1):306–333. - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources