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PMID: 24042449 Published · ppublish English Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't Review

The global NAFLD epidemic.

Nature reviews. Gastroenterology & hepatology ·Vol. 10 ·No. 11 ·2013-00-00 ·Pages 686-90

Loomba R, Sanyal AJ

Abstract

NAFLD is a clinical syndrome characterized by predominant macrovesicular steatosis of the liver. The clinical and histological phenotypes of NAFLD extend from a nonalcoholic fatty liver to NASH. Although the prevalence of NAFLD is increasing globally, and it is set to become the predominant cause of chronic liver disease in many parts of the world, the epidemiology and demographic characteristics of NAFLD vary worldwide. Indeed, the condition is associated with obesity and insulin resistance in most cases in the Western world, but the disease manifests at a lower BMI in Asian countries and many patients do not seem to have insulin resistance as determined using conventional methods. The similarities and differences in the epidemiology of NAFLD in different regions of the world are discussed and the potential role of genetics and insulin resistance in disease progression is also presented.

MeSH Terms
Disease Progression Epidemics Fatty Liver/epidemiology,genetics,physiopathology Global Health/trends Humans Insulin Resistance/physiology Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease Prevalence
Authors & Affiliations
2 authors, click to expand affiliations / ORCID
Loomba Rohit
Division of Gastroenterology, Department of Medicine and Division of Epidemiology, Department of Family and Preventive Medicine, University of California at San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093-0063, USA.
Sanyal Arun J
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Article Info
Journal
Nature reviews. Gastroenterology & hepatology
Abbr.
Nat Rev Gastroenterol Hepatol
ISSN
1759-5053
DOI
10.1038/nrgastro.2013.171
Published
2013-00-00
Epub
2013-00-17
Pages
686-90
Language
English
Region
England
NLM ID
101500079
Subset
IM
Grants
NIDDK NIH HHS · U01 DK061731 · United States
NCATS NIH HHS · UL1 TR000058 · United States
NIDDK NIH HHS · K23 DK090303 · United States
NIDDK NIH HHS · DK080506 · United States
PHS HHS · DKRO1081410 · International
NIDDK NIH HHS · R01 DK081410 · United States
External Links
PubMed source DOI: 10.1038/nrgastro.2013.171 View journal details
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