Is Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease in Children the Same Disease as in Adults?

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the leading cause of chronic liver disease in children, and can present in toddlerhood. There is a differential distribution of NAFLD in children based on race and gender. The gold standard for diagnosis and classification of pediatric NAFLD is liver biopsy although ongoing studies aim to identify and define noninvasive investigations for pediatric NAFLD. Treatments that have been shown to be successful in adult NAFLD, such as insulin sensitizers and Vitamin E, have not been proven to be as definitively successful in children with NAFLD.