Fatty Liver Disease: Causes, Symptoms and Treatment

Fatty liver disease covers a wide range of conditions, which cause a common symptom - accumulation of fat in liver cells. This disease may develop due to several causes, like, obesity, excessive alcohol intake, diabetes, etc. This disease is classified as alcoholic fatty liver disease and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Excess fat in the liver is very common, but in some people the condition worsens, leading to cirrhosis, liver failure and in rare cases, liver cancer too. The common and mild condition of this disease is called simple fatty liver or 'hepatic steatosis' and the more serious and worsened one is known as 'steatohepatitis', which is less common. There are two types of steatohepatitis - alcoholic steatohepatitis caused by alcoholism and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH).

Causes

Fatty liver disease is commonly associated with alcoholism or some other diseases related to fat metabolism. Metabolic syndrome includes diseases, like, diabetes, obesity, hypertension, dyslipidemia (increased levels of lipids in blood), etc. Other than these two reasons, conditions related to nutrition, some medications and some other diseases are also believed to cause fatty liver disease. Some people develop this disease after undergoing an abdominal surgery. Malnutrition, severe and sudden weight loss, overgrowth of bacteria and intravenous feeding, bypassing the usual process of eating and digestion can result in this disease. Drugs like corticosteroids, immune suppressing medication for rheumatoid arthritis and anti-retroviral therapy can also lead to fatty liver disease. Some environmental hepatotoxins, like some toxic mushrooms and some diseases, like HIV, hepatitis C and inflammatory bowel disease, can also cause fat deposits in the liver. This disease may also occur in people affected by hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid gland), high blood cholesterol and polycystic ovarian syndrome. In very rare cases, some pregnant women may also develop this condition, which can be detrimental for both, the mother and the fetus.

Symptoms

Generally, fatty liver disease is not associated with any symptoms. However, some of the affected people may experience symptoms like loss of appetite, nausea, dry mouth, fever, weakness, abdominal discomfort, swollen legs and feet, dark urine, easy bruising, memory loss and mental confusion, etc. In some patients, jaundice may also occur. As the symptoms rarely appear, this disease is diagnosed accidentally through routine blood tests or medical check-ups. It can be diagnosed through ultrasound, CT scan, blood tests, biopsy or an MRI.

Treatment

Treatment of fatty liver disease is mainly the treatment of the underlying cause. In case of simple fatty liver or the less severe form, the condition can be reversed with stopping alcohol consumption (for alcoholic fatty liver disease), by weight loss in obese people, treating the underlying diseases, etc. This condition can be reversed by these measures, if detected at an early stage. There is no specific treatment for the severe conditions of fatty liver disease, but health experts recommend reduction in alcohol consumption and improving the diseases related to fat metabolism. A change in diet and weight loss are considered as most effective against fatty liver disease. Medications include insulin sensitisers, antioxidants, ursodeoxycholic acid and lipid-lowering drugs.

With the increasing number of diabetic and obese people, the occurrence of fatty liver disease is also on the rise. As there is no specific treatment for this condition, the only remedy is, controlling the body weight through a balanced and healthy diet, controlling diabetes, avoiding alcohol and drugs causing this disease and regular exercises.