Meta-analysis: Natural history of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and diagnostic accuracy of non-invasive tests for liver disease severity

BACKGROUND. NAFLD ranges from simple steatosis (SS) to non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). The natural history of NAFLD and the optimal strategy to identify subjects with progressive liver disease are unclear. Objectives. To assess the evidence in: (1) natural history of NAFLD; and (2) non-invasive methods to differentiate NAFLD histological subtypes. DESIGN AND SETTING. Among 4185 articles published on MEDLINE, Cochrane Library, EMBASE, Pubmed, national and International meeting abstracts through July 2010, 40 articles assessing the natural history of NAFLD and 32 articles evaluating the diagnostic accuracy of non-invasive tests against liver biopsy (LB) were included. MEASUREMENTS. Two reviewers retrieved…

• AG
  American Gastroenterological Association
• SG
  Singapore General Hospital
• EA
  European Association for the Study of the Liver
• MR
  Medical Research Council