From Shadows to Spotlight: Exploring the Escalating Burden of Alcohol-Associated Liver Disease and Alcohol Use Disorder in Young Women

INTRODUCTION: The burden of alcohol-related complications is considerable, particularly alcohol-associated liver disease and alcohol use disorder (AUD). However, there are deficiencies in comprehensive epidemiological research focusing on these issues, especially among young women who display higher susceptibility to such complications compared with their male counterparts. We thus aimed to determine the global burden of these conditions in this vulnerable group. METHODS: Leveraging data from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019, we analyzed the prevalence, mortality, and disability-adjusted life years of alcohol-associated cirrhosis (AC), liver cancer from alcohol, and AUD in young women. The findings were categorized by region, nation, and sociodemographic index. RESULTS: The highest age-standardized prevalence rates were observed in AUD (895.96 [95% uncertainty interval (UI) 722.6–1,103.58]), followed by AC (65.33 [95% UI 48.37–86.49]) and liver cancer from alcohol (0.13 [95% UI 0.09–0.19]) per 100,000 people. The highest age-standardized mortality rates were observed in AC (0.75 [95% UI 0.55–0.97]), followed by AUD (0.48 [95% UI 0.43–0.53]) and liver cancer from alcohol (0.06 [95% UI 0.04–0.09]). The highest burdens of AC and AUD were observed in Central Europe, whereas the high-income Asia Pacific had the highest burden of liver cancer from alcohol. DISCUSSION: Throughout the past decade, the trend of AUD varied among regions while the impact of alcohol-associated liver disease has increased, requiring urgent public health strategy to mitigate these complications, particularly in female patients in Europe and the Asia-Pacific region.