Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis Growth: US and Germany to Lead Rising Number of Cases

Monday 26 August 2013, Amsterdam

The number of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) cases is forecast to increase by 8% between 2012 and 2022, driven by the rising prevalence of conditions such as obesity and diabetes, according to a new report from research and a consulting firm

The company’s latest report states that by 2022, the number of NASH cases in the six major markets (US, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and UK) will increase from 29 million in 2012 to 32 million. The US and Germany will have the largest NASH patient populations, with an estimated 15 million and 4 million people, respectively, affected by the disease by the end of the forecast period.

NASH is a common liver disease characterized by the presence of a fatty, inflamed, and damaged liver, resembling alcoholic liver disease, but occurring in people who drink little or no alcohol.  It can progress to more aggressive terminal liver diseases such as cirrhosis, causing liver failure, and in some rare cases, hepatocellular cancer.

This report shows that the NASH prevalence in 2012 was highest in people aged 40–59 years, and that men comprised 64% of those cases in the six major markets.

“While NASH manifests in morbidly obese and diabetic individuals, and in those with other metabolic conditions, elderly populations and male sex are also highly associated with the risk of the condition,” says Samantha Lee, epidemiologist.

An increasing number of NASH diagnoses will occur as a result of the growth of the ageing population and advances in diagnostic methods.

“With the development of less invasive gold-standard diagnostic methods for NASH other than liver biopsy and the implementation of widely-received systematic screening programs, the number of forecast prevalent cases is expected to increase considerably over the coming years,” Lee concludes.