The diagnosis and risk factors for evaluation of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease in children and adolescents

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease(NAFLD) in children and adolescents is considered to be a syndrome that is histologically characterized by hepatic steatosis and the accumulation of large droplets of triglycerides within hepatocytes in the absence of chronic alcohol consumption.NAFLD is a representation of the metabolic syndrome and insulin resistance in the liver.In children,NAFLD has been consistently associated with obesity,gender,insulin resistance and puberty.Thus,the diagnosis and risk factors for evaluation of NAFLD in children and adolescents need strong consideration of multiple risk factors such as gender and pubertal development etc different from adults.