Health and Economic Burden of Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease in the United States and Its Impact on Veterans
NAFLD is a leading cause of chronic liver disease and cirrhosis in the US and is associated with metabolic syndrome, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and all-cause mortality.
Federal Practitioner. 2019 January;36(1):14-19
January 10, 2019|Federal Practitioner
Author and Disclosure Information
There is a growing need to address the epidemic of metabolic syndrome, as heralded by the World Health Organization in its 2013 global action plan. To address this multifaceted disease, initial approach should be to improve NAFLD education among veterans, beginning with the primary care teams and extending to specialty care, including hepatologists. Future steps also should include the development of a comprehensive metabolic/NAFLD clinic in all US Department of Veterans Affairs medical centers that integrates multidisciplinary care, point-of-care evaluation (eg, elastography staging of disease), and access to clinical trials, and have NAFLD care/outcome as a key performance target for all providers.
