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Economic and Quality-of-Life Implications of Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease

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Abstract

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a very common chronic liver disease worldwide, is on the rise following the trend of increasing prevalence of obesity, is the second most common indication for liver transplantation, and is an important cause for hepatocellular carcinoma. Despite the increasing recognition of NAFLD as an important chronic liver disease, little has been published on the economic and health-related quality of life (HR-QOL) impact of NAFLD. We reviewed the current literature related to the economics and HR-QOL of NAFLD and found that increased costs and decreased HR-QOL were associated with NAFLD.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medicine, Inova Fairfax Hospital, 3300 Gallows Road, Falls Church, VA, 22042, USA

    Zobair M. Younossi & Linda Henry

  2. Betty and Guy Beatty Center for Integrated Research, Inova Health System, Falls Church, VA, USA

    Zobair M. Younossi & Linda Henry

  3. Center for Outcomes Research in Liver Diseases, Washington DC, USA

    Linda Henry

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  1. Zobair M. Younossi
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  2. Linda Henry
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Correspondence to Zobair M. Younossi.

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This study was approved through our institutional review board and is in full compliance with all ethical standards regarding secondary data research. In addition, no external funding was received for this study; only internal funds were used. Zobair Younossi, MD is a consultant to Abbvie, Gilead, BMS, Intercept and GSK. Linda Henry PhD has any conflicts of interest to report.

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Both authors shared responsibility for the development and writing of this manuscript. Dr. Zobair Younossi is the guarantor for the overall content.

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Younossi, Z.M., Henry, L. Economic and Quality-of-Life Implications of Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease. PharmacoEconomics 33, 1245–1253 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40273-015-0316-5

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