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Medical Author:

Jay W. Marks, MD

Jay W. Marks, MD

Jay W. Marks, MD, is a board-certified internist and gastroenterologist. He graduated from Yale University School of Medicine and trained in internal medicine and gastroenterology at UCLA/Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles.

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Medical Editor:

Bhupinder Anand, MD

In this Article

• Nonalcoholic fatty liver facts
• What are nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and steatohepatitis?
• Why is nonalcoholic fatty liver disease important?
• What causes nonalcoholic fatty liver disease?
• What is the difference between nonalcoholic fatty liver and steatohepatitis?
• What is the relationship between nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, obesity, and diabetes?
• What is the relationship between nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and the metabolic syndrome?
• What are the symptoms of fatty liver?
• How is nonalcoholic fatty liver disease diagnosed?
• What are the other causes of fatty liver?
• What are the complications of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease?
• How is nonalcoholic fatty liver disease treated?
• Weight loss and exercise
• Diet
• Medications and other treatment options
• Bariatric surgery
• Liver transplant
• What is the relationship between nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and cardiovascular disease?
• What diseases are associated with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease?
• Does nonalcoholic fatty liver disease occur in children?
• Patient Comments: Fatty Liver - Symptoms
• Patient Comments: Fatty Liver - Causes
• Patient Comments: Fatty Liver - Diet
• Find a local Gastroenterologist in your town
• Fatty Liver Index

As mentioned previously, cardiovascular disease, especially heart attacks and strokes, is commonly seen in patients with fatty liver. In fact, cardiovascular causes of death occur more frequently than liver-related deaths. Whereas the components of the metabolic syndrome are risk factors for cardiovascular disease, NAFLD has been found to be a risk factor that is independent of the metabolic syndrome, increasing the risk two-fold. Since the means of treating NAFLD are limited, it is important that the manifestations of the metabolic syndrome - obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, dyslipidemia (abnormalities of fats or lipids in the blood) - should be aggressively treated.

The diseases of the metabolic syndrome that are associated with NAFLD have already been discussed. Other associations exist including fatty pancreas, hypothyroidism, polyps of the colon, elevated blood uric acid, vitamin D deficiency, polycystic ovaries, and obstructive sleep apnea. For example, 50% of patients with NAFLD have obstructive sleep apnea, and more than 90% of patients with obstructive sleep apnea have NAFLD. Associations do not prove causation, and in most cases it is not clear why the associations exist--whether the associations are due to a causal relationship or they reflect an underlying common cause.