Prevalence of Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis and Associated Fibrosis Stages Among US Adults Using Imaging-Based vs Biomarker-Based Noninvasive Tests

**Introduction:** Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is believed to be the most common chronic liver disease worldwide. Therapies are under development for nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), the progressive form of NAFLD, such that the prevalence of NASH with liver fibrosis, which is likely...

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Main Authors: Jesse Fishman, Tom O'Connell, Christina M. Parrinello, Jonathan J. Woolley, Eric Bercaw, Michael R. Charlton
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Columbia Data Analytics, LLC 2024-02-01
Series:Journal of Health Economics and Outcomes Research
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.36469/001c.92223
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author Jesse Fishman
Tom O'Connell
Christina M. Parrinello
Jonathan J. Woolley
Eric Bercaw
Michael R. Charlton
author_facet Jesse Fishman
Tom O'Connell
Christina M. Parrinello
Jonathan J. Woolley
Eric Bercaw
Michael R. Charlton
author_sort Jesse Fishman
collection DOAJ
description **Introduction:** Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is believed to be the most common chronic liver disease worldwide. Therapies are under development for nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), the progressive form of NAFLD, such that the prevalence of NASH with liver fibrosis, which is likely to require treatment, may be of interest to healthcare decision makers. Noninvasive tests are used in initial screening for NASH, as well as in observational studies of NASH prevalence. However, existing evidence does not address how estimated prevalence varies with different noninvasive tests. This analysis estimated the prevalence of NASH among US adults and assessed variation with different noninvasive tests. **Methods:** A cross-sectional analysis was conducted using the 2017–March 2020 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey cycle. Participants with presumed NAFLD (steatosis and without alternative causes of liver disease) were identified, among whom NASH was predicted based on FAST score, Fibrosis-4 (FIB-4), and AST-to-Platelet Ratio Index (APRI) cutoffs across 11 scenarios. Among NASH participants, fibrosis stages were explored based on distribution across the spectrum of liver-stiffness measurements. **Results:** Among participants with complete data for the analysis (N=6969), prevalence of presumed NAFLD was 25.6%. Within presumed NAFLD, prediction of NASH using imaging-based NIT cutoffs yielded estimated prevalence of 1.3%-4.8% (3.3 million-12.2 million) based on FAST score cutoffs from 0.35-0.67. Using biomarker-based NIT cutoffs yielded estimated prevalence of 0.4%-12.3% (1.0 million-14.5 million) based on FIB-4 cutoffs from 0.90-2.67, and 0.1%-1.9% (0.2-5.0 million) based on APRI cutoffs from 0.50-1.50. **Conclusion:** Prevalence of NASH among US adults was estimated to range from 1.3% to 4.8% when predicted using imaging-based noninvasive test values for participants with presumed NAFLD, generally aligning with estimates in the literature of prevalence of biopsy-confirmed NASH. Use of biomarker-based noninvasive test values for prediction of NASH yielded a wider range of estimates with FIB-4, and a considerably lower range of estimates with APRI.
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spelling doaj.art-21b608f6be92499391d65abaffd80d002024-02-22T17:58:33ZengColumbia Data Analytics, LLCJournal of Health Economics and Outcomes Research2327-22362024-02-01111Prevalence of Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis and Associated Fibrosis Stages Among US Adults Using Imaging-Based vs Biomarker-Based Noninvasive TestsJesse FishmanTom O'ConnellChristina M. ParrinelloJonathan J. WoolleyEric BercawMichael R. Charlton**Introduction:** Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is believed to be the most common chronic liver disease worldwide. Therapies are under development for nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), the progressive form of NAFLD, such that the prevalence of NASH with liver fibrosis, which is likely to require treatment, may be of interest to healthcare decision makers. Noninvasive tests are used in initial screening for NASH, as well as in observational studies of NASH prevalence. However, existing evidence does not address how estimated prevalence varies with different noninvasive tests. This analysis estimated the prevalence of NASH among US adults and assessed variation with different noninvasive tests. **Methods:** A cross-sectional analysis was conducted using the 2017–March 2020 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey cycle. Participants with presumed NAFLD (steatosis and without alternative causes of liver disease) were identified, among whom NASH was predicted based on FAST score, Fibrosis-4 (FIB-4), and AST-to-Platelet Ratio Index (APRI) cutoffs across 11 scenarios. Among NASH participants, fibrosis stages were explored based on distribution across the spectrum of liver-stiffness measurements. **Results:** Among participants with complete data for the analysis (N=6969), prevalence of presumed NAFLD was 25.6%. Within presumed NAFLD, prediction of NASH using imaging-based NIT cutoffs yielded estimated prevalence of 1.3%-4.8% (3.3 million-12.2 million) based on FAST score cutoffs from 0.35-0.67. Using biomarker-based NIT cutoffs yielded estimated prevalence of 0.4%-12.3% (1.0 million-14.5 million) based on FIB-4 cutoffs from 0.90-2.67, and 0.1%-1.9% (0.2-5.0 million) based on APRI cutoffs from 0.50-1.50. **Conclusion:** Prevalence of NASH among US adults was estimated to range from 1.3% to 4.8% when predicted using imaging-based noninvasive test values for participants with presumed NAFLD, generally aligning with estimates in the literature of prevalence of biopsy-confirmed NASH. Use of biomarker-based noninvasive test values for prediction of NASH yielded a wider range of estimates with FIB-4, and a considerably lower range of estimates with APRI.https://doi.org/10.36469/001c.92223
spellingShingle Jesse Fishman
Tom O'Connell
Christina M. Parrinello
Jonathan J. Woolley
Eric Bercaw
Michael R. Charlton
Prevalence of Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis and Associated Fibrosis Stages Among US Adults Using Imaging-Based vs Biomarker-Based Noninvasive Tests
Journal of Health Economics and Outcomes Research
title Prevalence of Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis and Associated Fibrosis Stages Among US Adults Using Imaging-Based vs Biomarker-Based Noninvasive Tests
title_full Prevalence of Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis and Associated Fibrosis Stages Among US Adults Using Imaging-Based vs Biomarker-Based Noninvasive Tests
title_fullStr Prevalence of Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis and Associated Fibrosis Stages Among US Adults Using Imaging-Based vs Biomarker-Based Noninvasive Tests
title_full_unstemmed Prevalence of Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis and Associated Fibrosis Stages Among US Adults Using Imaging-Based vs Biomarker-Based Noninvasive Tests
title_short Prevalence of Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis and Associated Fibrosis Stages Among US Adults Using Imaging-Based vs Biomarker-Based Noninvasive Tests
title_sort prevalence of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis and associated fibrosis stages among us adults using imaging based vs biomarker based noninvasive tests
url https://doi.org/10.36469/001c.92223
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