Alcohol-Associated Liver Disease
AASLD develops evidence-based practice guidelines and practice guidances which are updated regularly by a multi-disciplinary panel of experts, including hepatologists, and include recommendations of preferred approaches to the diagnostic, therapeutic, and preventive aspects of care.
Practice Guidance
Alcohol-associated Liver Disease [updated July 2019]
Alcohol-associated liver disease (ALD) represents a spectrum of liver injury resulting from alcohol use, ranging from hepatic steatosis to more advanced forms including alcoholic hepatitis (AH), alcohol-associated cirrhosis (AC), and acute AH presenting as acute-on-chronic liver failure. ALD is a major cause of liver disease worldwide, both on its own and as a co-factor in the progression of chronic viral hepatitis, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), iron overload, and other liver diseases. ALD develops through several stages, beginning with hepatic steatosis, and, in some individuals, gradually progressing through AH (the histological correlate of which is alcoholic steatohepatitis), culminating in cirrhosis. Progression through these various stages is dependent on continued heavy alcohol use and other risk factors, including female sex, genetic susceptibility, diet, and comorbid liver disease. ALD carries a significant stigma in society. It is increasingly recognized by providers that patients and their families seek to reduce the stigma of ALD, and a change from the term “alcoholic” to “alcohol-associated” will help; thus, alcohol-associated liver disease, alcohol-associated steatohepatitis, and alcohol-associated cirrhosis are suggested, retaining the familiar abbreviations (ALD, ASH, and AC, respectively). Due to longstanding usage, the term “alcoholic hepatitis” will likely persist.