Definitions Articles

NASH covers a wide spectrum of disease severity and NAFLD is increasingly common worldwide ☂ and has become the principal cause of chronic liver disease.

Inflammation in Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease: Part 1

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has a more progressive form, non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). In both conditions, inflammation is a key driver of the pathogenesis. There are various causes of metabolic injury in the conditions, leading to the activation of different immune cells such as hepatic Kupffer cells.

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Inflammation in Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease: Part 2

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has a more progressive form, non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). In both conditions, inflammation is a key driver of the pathogenesis. Current treatments mostly focus on promoting weight loss (through encouraging lifestyle changes, or, if necessary, bariatric surgery) and improving comorbidities through pharmacotherapy, such as type 2 diabetes.

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MAFLD or NAFLD: reasons and relevance of a single-letter change

Recently, a consensus recommended 'metabolic (dysfunction) associated fatty liver disease' as a more appropriate name to describe fatty liver disease associated with metabolic dysfunction (MAFLD). This single-letter change in the NAFLD acronym suggests that the old acronyms should be abandoned...

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Prevalence of NAFLD and MAFLD in the US population

S. Ciardullo et G. Perseghin (Policlinico di Monza, and University of Milano Bicocca, Italy) performed a cross-sectional study of adults recruited in the 2017-2018 NHANES Survey, a representative sample of the general US population, in order to determine the prevalence of NAFLD, MAFLD and associated advanced fibrosis in the US population...
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From NAFLD to MAFLD: a premature change in terminology

Despite the substantial gains in our understanding of NAFLD/NASH over the past 2 decades, there has been some dissatisfaction with the terminology “non-alcoholic” which overemphasises “alcohol” and underemphasises the predisposing metabolic risk factors.
The term MAFLD is still suboptimal, leaving a great deal of ambiguity...
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NAFLD as a metabolic disease, a review

A systematic literature review to identify recent epidemiological, biomarker, genetic and clinical evidence that expands our understanding of NAFLD as a metabolic disorder was performed by B. Cariou et al. (Inserm, CNRS, France). It appears that here is a growing body of evidence on the links between NAFLD/NASH pathogenesis and mechanisms of metabolic dysfunction...
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MAFLD: A Consensus-Driven Proposed Nomenclature for Metabolic Associated Fatty Liver Disease

The exclusion of other chronic liver diseases including “excess” alcohol intake are usually necessary to establish a diagnosis of metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD). However, “positive criteria” to diagnose the disease are required. A panel of international experts from 22 countries...
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