Fatty liver without a large “belly”: Magnified review of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease in non-obese patients

• Published in: 世界胃肠病理生理学杂志：英文版（电子版） no. 3; pp. 100 - 107
• Main Author: Mohamad H Yousef Alhareth Al Juboori Abdulmajeed A Albarrak Jamal A Ibdah Veysel Tahan
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 2017
• ISSN: 2150-5330; 2150-5330

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease(NAFLD) is well described as a common cause of chronic liver disease, mostly in the obese population. It refers to a spectrum of chronic liver disease that starts with simple steatosis than progresses to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis and cirrhosis in patients without significant alcohol consumption. NAFLD in the non-obese population has been increasingly reported and studied recently. The pathogenesis of nonobese NAFLD is poorly understood and is related to genetic predisposition, most notably patatin-like phospholipase domain-containing 33 G allele polymorphism that leads to intrahepatic triglyceride accumulation and insulin resistance. Nonobese NAFLD is associated with components of metabolic syndrome and, especially, visceral obesity which seems to be an important etiological factor in this group. Dietary factors and, specifically, a high fructose diet seem to play a role. Cardiovascular events remain the main cause of mortality and morbidity in NAFLD, including in the nonobese population. There is not enough data regarding treatment in non-obese NAFLD patients, but similar to NAFLD in obese subjects, lifestyle changes that include dietary modification, physical activity, and weight loss remain the mainstay of treatment.