Epidemiology of Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is rapidly becoming the most common liver disease worldwide. The prevalence of NAFLD in the general population of Western countries is 20-30%. About 2-3% of the general population is estimated to have non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), which may progress to liver cirrhosis and hepatocarcinoma. As a rule, the prevalence of NAFLD is higher in males and increases with increasing age, and it is influenced by the diagnostic method and the characteristics of the population, especially lifestyle habits. Population-based studies provide better estimates of the prevalence of NAFLD as compared to autoptic and clinical studies, but few such studies have been performed to date.…