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Review
. 2023 Jan 29;15(3):687.
doi: 10.3390/nu15030687.

Understanding NAFLD: From Case Identification to Interventions, Outcomes, and Future Perspectives

Daniel Clayton-Chubb  1   2 , William Kemp  1   2 , Ammar Majeed  1   2 , John S Lubel  1   2 , Alex Hodge  3   4 , Stuart K Roberts  1   2
Affiliations
Review

Understanding NAFLD: From Case Identification to Interventions, Outcomes, and Future Perspectives

Daniel Clayton-Chubb et al. Nutrients. .

Abstract

While non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a prevalent and frequent cause of liver-related morbidity and mortality, it is also strongly associated with cardiovascular disease-related morbidity and mortality, likely driven by its associations with insulin resistance and other manifestations of metabolic dysregulation. However, few satisfactory pharmacological treatments are available for NAFLD due in part to its complex pathophysiology, and challenges remain in stratifying individual patient's risk for liver and cardiovascular disease related outcomes. In this review, we describe the development and progression of NAFLD, including its pathophysiology and outcomes. We also describe different tools for identifying patients with NAFLD who are most at risk of liver-related and cardiovascular-related complications, as well as current and emerging treatment options, and future directions for research.

Keywords: MAFLD; NAFLD; NASH; cardiovascular disease; cirrhosis; metabolic syndrome; non-invasive tests.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have no conflict of interest to declare.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Proportion of U.S.A. adults with NAFLD and/or obesity (adapted from Younossi et al. [3]).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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