Abstract
Nonacloholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is an increasingly recognized condition of excess fat deposition within the liver. NAFLD includes a spectrum of liver pathology ranging from bland hepatic steatosis to steatohepatitis and cirrhosis.
Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) is an inflammatory and fibrosing condition of the liver thought to be an intermediate stage of NAFLD that may progress to end-stage liver disease, liver-related death and hepatocellular carcinoma. Nonaalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) is a common liver disease that is characterized histologically by hepatic steatosis, lobular inflammation, and hepatocellular ballooning, it can progress to cirrhosis in up of 15% of patients.
There is currently no therapy that is of proven benefit for nonalcoholic steatohepatitis. The disease is closely associated with insulin resistance and features of the metabolic syndrome such as obesity, hypertriglyceridemia, and type 2 diabetes.