Functional Impairment in Alcoholic Liver Disease and Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease Is Significant and Persists over 3 Years of Follow-Up

Background and Aims Alcoholic liver disease (ALD) and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) are common and increasing in prevalence. We examined prevalence and predictors of functional impairment in biopsy-proven ALD and NAFLD. Change in function over 3 years was explored. Methods Validated functional, cognitive, autonomic, and fatigue symptom assessment tools were completed by patients who had attended our liver clinic. Results Totals of 224 NAFLD and 107 ALD patients returned the assessment tools. NAFLD and ALD demonstrated comparable functional difficulties, which were significantly worse than controls ( p