Obesity is associated with various comorbidities, such as type II diabetes, hypertension, dyslipidemia, and cardiovascular disease. Gastrointestinal complications are also frequent and obesity is a direct cause of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, and are risk factors for gastroesophageal reflux disease, pancreatitis, gallstone disease, diarrhea, dyssynergic defection, and various gastrointestinal cancers. Diagnosis is usually made by measuring body mass index (BMI). Although BMI is correlated with body fat mass, it may overestimate subjects with high muscle mass and underestimate subjects with low muscle mass. Co-measurement of waist circumference as a reflection of abdominal obesity for subjects with BMIs ranging from 25 to 35 kg/m2 has been recommended; however, it is still an anthropometric diagnosis that does not clearly discriminate subjects at risk for developing comorbidities. Biomarkers reflect the underlying biological mechanisms of obesity and can be used to characterize the obesity phenotype (i.e., at high risk for disease development) as well as a target for disease-causing factors. In this article, we describe the conventional diagnosis, biomarkers of obesity, and current challenges.
Adipose Tissue ; Biomarkers ; Body Mass Index ; Cardiovascular Diseases ; Comorbidity ; Diagnosis ; Diarrhea ; Dyslipidemias ; Gallstones ; Gastroesophageal Reflux ; Gastrointestinal Diseases ; Gastrointestinal Neoplasms ; Hypertension ; Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease ; Obesity ; Obesity, Abdominal ; Pancreatitis ; Phenotype ; Risk Factors ; Waist Circumference

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the most common cause of chronic liver disease in children. The global prevalence of pediatric NAFLD from general populations is 7.6%. In obese children, the prevalence is higher in Asia. NAFLD has a strong heritable component based on ethnic difference in the prevalence and clustering within families. Genetic polymorphisms of patatin-like phospholipase domain–containing protein 3 (PNPLA3), transmembrane 6 superfamily member 2, and glucokinase regulatory protein (GCKR) are associated with the risk of NAFLD in children. Variants of PNPLA3 and GCKR are more common in Asians. Alterations of the gut microbiome might contribute to the pathogenesis of NAFLD. High fructose intake increases the risk of NAFLD. Liver fibrosis is a poor prognostic factor for disease progression to cirrhosis. Magnetic resonance spectroscopy and magnetic resonance proton density fat fraction are more accurate for steatosis quantification than ultrasound. Noninvasive imaging methods to assess liver fibrosis, such as transient elastography, shear-wave elastography, and magnetic resonance elastography are useful in predicting advanced fibrosis, but they need further validation. Longitudinal follow-up studies into adulthood are needed to better understand the natural history of pediatric NAFLD.
Asia ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Child ; Diagnosis ; Disease Progression ; Elasticity Imaging Techniques ; Epidemiology ; Fibrosis ; Follow-Up Studies ; Fructose ; Gastrointestinal Microbiome ; Genetics ; Glucokinase ; Humans ; Liver Cirrhosis ; Liver Diseases ; Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy ; Microbiota ; Natural History ; Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease ; Phospholipases ; Polymorphism, Genetic ; Prevalence ; Protons ; Ultrasonography

PURPOSE: Obesity is risk factor for nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). However, nonobese patients are also increasingly susceptible to NAFLD. The aim of this study was to compare the clinical characteristics of obese and nonobese pediatric patients with NAFLD. METHODS: We retrospectively studied 68 patients who were diagnosed with NAFLD between January 2010 and October 2016 at 10–18 years of age. Body mass index ≥95th percentile for age and sex was defined as obesity. Abdominal ultrasonography and laboratory, anthropometrics measurements were evaluated. RESULTS: Among the 68, 26 (38.2%) were nonobese patients. The ratio of male to female was 5.8:1, and the median age at diagnosis was 13 years (range, 10–17 years). Significant higher triglyceride (223.0 mg/dL vs. 145.9 mg/dL, P=0.047) and total cholesterol levels (211.6 mg/dL vs. 173.2 mg/dL, P=0.011) were shown in nonobese than obese patients. High-density lipoprotein cholesterol level < 40 mg/dL (hazard ratio [HR], 6.5; 95% confidence interval [CI], 2.13–7.10; P=0.048), total cholesterol level >200mg/dL (HR, 5.6; 95% CI, 1.23–15.31; P=0.038) and abdominal obesity (HR, 2.53; 95% CI, 1.22–4.68; P=0.013) were significant risk factors for NAFLD in nonobese patients. CONCLUSION: Nonobese patients present a substantial proportion of pediatric NAFLD cases. Significant abnormal lipid concentrations were found in nonobese and abdominal obesity was important risk factor for nonobese NAFLD.
Body Mass Index ; Cholesterol ; Diagnosis ; Female ; Humans ; Lipoproteins ; Male ; Metabolic Diseases ; Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease* ; Obesity ; Obesity, Abdominal ; Pediatric Obesity ; Retrospective Studies ; Risk Factors ; Triglycerides ; Ultrasonography

Bile canalicular antibody (BCA) was first reported in 1969. Many studies of BCA were performed in the 1970s and 1980s and revealed that BCA has a highly positive rate in chronic active hepatitis and primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC). These studies suggested that BCA can be useful in the diagnosis of these liver diseases. However, BCA is almost negative in patients with alcoholic hepatitis. We report a case of BCA in a 50-yr-old woman with a history of heavy alcohol consumption. The patient's serum levels of aspartate transaminase and alanine transaminase were increased, leading to a diagnosis of alcoholic hepatitis. The patient was evaluated for liver disease. Anti-mitochondria antibody, anti-smooth muscle antibody, and anti-liver kidney microsomal antibody tests were conducted, yielding negative results. However, during this testing process, the patient's serum was incidentally found to be positive for BCA at a titer of 1:160. This is the first case report of BCA in Korea.
Alanine Transaminase ; Alcohol Drinking ; Alcoholics* ; Aspartate Aminotransferases ; Bile* ; Diagnosis ; Female ; Hepatitis, Alcoholic* ; Hepatitis, Chronic ; Humans ; Kidney ; Korea ; Liver Cirrhosis, Biliary ; Liver Diseases

Alcoholic liver disease (ALD) is a leading cause of cirrhosis, liver cancer, and acute and chronic liver failure and as such causes significant morbidity and mortality. While alcohol consumption is slightly decreasing in several European countries, it is rising in others and remains high in many countries around the world. The pathophysiology of ALD is still incompletely understood but relates largely to the direct toxic effects of alcohol and its main intermediate, acetaldehyde. Recently, novel putative mechanisms have been identified in systematic scans covering the entire human genome and raise new hypotheses on previously unknown pathways. The latter also identify host genetic risk factors for significant liver injury, which may help design prognostic risk scores. The diagnosis of ALD is relatively easy with a panel of well-evaluated tests and only rarely requires a liver biopsy. Treatment of ALD is difficult and grounded in abstinence as the pivotal therapeutic goal; once cirrhosis is established, treatment largely resembles that of other etiologies of advanced liver damage. Liver transplantation is a sound option for carefully selected patients with cirrhosis and alcoholic hepatitis because relapse rates are low and prognosis is comparable to other etiologies. Still, many countries are restrictive in allocating donor livers for ALD patients. Overall, few therapeutic options exist for severe ALD. However, there is good evidence of benefit for only corticosteroids in severe alcoholic hepatitis, while most other efforts are of limited efficacy. Considering the immense burden of ALD worldwide, efforts of medical professionals and industry partners to develop targeted therapies in ALF has been disappointingly low.
Acetaldehyde ; Adrenal Cortex Hormones ; Alcohol Drinking ; Alcoholics* ; Biopsy ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular ; Diagnosis ; End Stage Liver Disease ; Fibrosis ; Genome, Human ; Hepatitis, Alcoholic ; Humans ; Liver ; Liver Cirrhosis ; Liver Diseases, Alcoholic* ; Liver Transplantation ; Malnutrition ; Mortality ; Prognosis ; Recurrence ; Risk Factors ; Tissue Donors

The Korean Genome Epidemiology Study (KoGES) is a principal cohort study providing valuable evidence for the prevention of major chronic diseases such as hypertension, obesity, and diabetes in Korea. Since 2001, the Ansan-Anseong cohort is one of the representative cohorts in the KoGES and recruited about 10,000 participants from Ansan and Anseong city to undergo a comprehensive health examination biennially. About 3,000 participants in the Ansan cohort underwent abdominal computed tomography scan to detect the presence of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). The prevalence of NAFLD was about 23% in this study, and it was twice as high in subjects with diabetes compared to those without. Subjects with NAFLD had early diastolic dysfunction in tissue Doppler study and showed lower vitamin D concentrations than those without. We also found that the palatin-like phospholipase domain containing 3 single nucleotide polymorphisms were significantly associated with NAFLD. Interim prospective analysis after six years showed that NAFLD was associated with worsening of metabolic risk factors and an about 2.6 higher likelihood of developing diabetes than in those without. These results present the clinical importance of the diagnosis and treatment of NAFLD to reduce the future development of diabetes and cardiovascular diseases.
Cardiovascular Diseases ; Chronic Disease ; Cohort Studies ; Diagnosis ; Epidemiology* ; Fatty Liver ; Genome* ; Gyeonggi-do ; Hypertension ; Korea ; Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease* ; Obesity ; Phospholipases ; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide ; Prevalence ; Prospective Studies ; Risk Factors ; Vitamin D

Diagnosis, Differential ; Humans ; Liver Diseases, Alcoholic ; diagnosis ; Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease ; diagnosis

Along with the aging process, the spectrum of liver disease changes greatly. Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in elderly people lead to low liver function and is also the major cause of extrahepatic diseases, such as cardiovascular disease and malignant tumor. This review provides an overview of the morphological structure and function of the liver in aged people, and discusses the characteristics of weakness, malnutrition and limited movement in the elderly, as well as the current status of multiple diseases and multiple drug use. Finally, this article puts forward some appropriate regimens for the diagnosis and treatment of NAFLD in elderly people to provide a reference for clinical practice.
Aged ; Cardiovascular Diseases ; Humans ; Liver ; pathology ; Malnutrition ; Neoplasms ; Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease ; diagnosis ; pathology ; therapy ; Risk Factors

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the most common liver disease seen in patients with obesity, diabetes, and metabolic syndrome. Metabolic syndrome is an important predictor of the severe form of NAFLD, nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), and NASH patients with diabetes have an increased risk of liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. With the prevalence of obesity and diabetes around the world, NAFLD has become a global public health problem. NAFLD is not only one of the most important causes of liver-related disability and mortality, but also associated with the increasing incidence of diabetes and cardiovascular disease. The effective prevention and treatment of NAFLD is expected to reduce the burden of liver disease and cardiovascular disease. Therefore, this article overviews the advances in the diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of NAFLD.
Carcinoma, Hepatocellular ; epidemiology ; Cardiovascular Diseases ; epidemiology ; Diabetes Mellitus ; epidemiology ; Humans ; Liver Cirrhosis ; epidemiology ; Liver Neoplasms ; epidemiology ; Metabolic Syndrome ; epidemiology ; Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease ; diagnosis ; epidemiology ; therapy ; Obesity ; epidemiology ; Prevalence

Recent advances in the noninvasive imaging of chronic liver disease have led to improvements in diagnosis, particularly with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). A comprehensive evaluation of the liver may be performed with the quantification of the degree of hepatic steatosis, liver iron concentration, and liver fibrosis. In addition, MRI of the liver may be used to identify complications of cirrhosis, including portal hypertension, ascites, and the development of hepatocellular carcinoma. In this review article, we discuss the state of the art techniques in liver MRI, namely, magnetic resonance elastography, hepatobiliary phase MRI, and liver fat and iron quantification MRI. The use of these advanced techniques in the management of chronic liver diseases, including non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, will be elaborated.
Ascites ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular ; Diagnosis ; Elasticity Imaging Techniques* ; Fatty Liver ; Fibrosis ; Hypertension, Portal ; Iron ; Liver Cirrhosis ; Liver Diseases* ; Liver* ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging* ; Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease