Pediatric nonalcoholic fatty liver disease: A clinical and laboratory challenge.

ABSTRACT: The true prevalence of pediatric nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is unknown. Challenges in determining the population prevalence of NAFLD include the type of test (and the reference intervals used to define normal and abnormal), the type of population (general population, hospital series), the demographic characteristics of the population sampled, and the nature of the study design. The natural history of pediatric NAFLD remains uncertain. The issue of when to perform a liver biopsy in children with suspected NAFLD remains controversial. Children with NAFLD but normal alanine aminotransferase are rarely investigated. However, evidence of alterations in glucose metabolism parameters should prompt a better understanding of the natural history of pediatric NAFLD not only in terms of

SUBMITTER: Pacifico L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2998974 | biostudies-literature | 2010 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature