SERUM CERAMIDE AS AN INDEPENDENT PREDICTOR OF STEATOSIS GRADE AND FIBROSIS STAGE IN NON-ALCOHOLIC FATTY LIVER DISEASE

Abstract

The prognosis of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is determined primarily by the severity of hepatic steatosis and, above all, by the stage of fibrosis, since progressive fibrosis is the principal predictor of adverse liver-related outcomes. Consequently, the clinical value of a laboratory marker depends not only on its ability to detect the presence of disease, but also on its capacity to reflect disease severity. Ceramide participates in lipotoxic injury, mitochondrial dysfunction and the activation of fibrogenesis, which makes it a rational candidate for the stratification of patients according to the risk of progression.