Definition

Alcoholic liver disease (ALD) is a clinical and histological spectrum of diseases which includes fatty liver (FL) at one extreme and alcoholic cirrhosis (AC) at the other.

Fatty liver is generally benign and asymptomatic and occurs in patients who abuse alcohol for a period of days to weeks. It is entirely reversible with abstinence from alcohol. However, with susceptibility and continued alcohol abuse, more advanced disease can develop with alcoholic hepatitis (AH), an inflammation of the liver, which can lead to, or exist with AC, in which the liver can become fibrosed.

Learning Bite

ALD can be thought of as a spectrum from reversible fatty liver, to alcoholic hepatitis, to alcoholic cirrhosis.