Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease Isn't Associated with Excess Mortality

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is associated with cirrhosis, liver cancer, and several cardiovascular (CV) risk factors such as diabetes and obesity. Prior studies, however, have not established a clear association between NAFLD and early mortality, and most of these studies were based on highly selected patient populations (e.g., those with biopsy-proven NAFLD). To assess this association, researchers conducted a prospective cohort study based on data from the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (1988–1994), which involved more than 11,000 adults (age range, 20–74) who underwent baseline hepatic ultrasonography.

NAFLD was defined as “the presence of moderate to severe hepatic steatosis with normal liver enzyme l…