Spectrum, Screening, and Diagnosis of Alcohol-related Liver Disease

Alcohol-related liver disease (ALD) represents one of the leading causes of chronic liver disease and is a major cause of liver-related deaths worldwide. ALD encompasses a range of disorders including simple steatosis, alco-holic steatohepatitis, fibrosis, cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma. Patients with underlying ALD and continued heavy alcohol consumption can also develop an episode of acute-on-chronic liver injury called alcohol-associated hepatitis, the most severe form of the disease, which portends a poor prognosis. The most important risk factor for the development of ALD is the amount of alcohol consumed. Individual susceptibility to progression to advanced fibrosis among heavy drinkers is likely determined by a combination of behavioral, environmental, genetic, and epigenetic factors, but the mechanisms are largely unknown. The only effective ther-apy for ALD is prolonged alcohol abstinence. Diagnosis of ALD involves assessing patients for alcohol use dis-order and signs of advanced liver disease. In clinical practice, the histological assessment for ALD diagnosis is uncommon, and it is usually based on the medical history, clinical manifestations, and laboratory and imaging tests. Several promising biomarkers that can have both diagnostic and prognostic value in patients with ALD have been identified in recent years. This review provides an overview of the clinical spectrum of ALD, the diag-nostic approach of the disease from different perspectives as well as current diagnostic and prognostic bio-markers. ( J CLIN EXP HEPATOL 2023;13:75-87)

Automated summary

Alcohol-related liver disease (ALD) is a leading cause of chronic liver disease and liver-related deaths worldwide. It encompasses various disorders and the most severe form is alcohol-associated hepatitis. The amount of alcohol consumed is the most important risk factor for ALD. Prolonged alcohol abstinence is the only effective therapy. Several potential biomarkers have been identified for diagnosis and prognosis in patients with ALD.