Copyright
©The Author(s) 2026. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Hepatol. Jan 27, 2026; 18(1): 111211
Published online Jan 27, 2026. doi: 10.4254/wjh.v18.i1.111211
Published online Jan 27, 2026. doi: 10.4254/wjh.v18.i1.111211
Fighting the epidemic of pediatric metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease: Role of non-invasive diagnostics and early pharmacological intervention
Nicholas Beng-Hui Ng, Andrew Anjian Sng, James Guoxian Huang, Department of Paediatrics, Khoo Teck Puat - National University Children’s Medical Institute, National University Health System, Singapore 119228, Singapore
Author contributions: Ng NBH and Huang JG were involved in the conception of the work, data collection, drafting of the article, critical revision of the article and final approval of the published version; Sng AA was involved in the data interpretation, drafting of the article, critical revision of the article and final approval of the published version.
Conflict-of-interest statement: Ng NBH and Sng AA have received honoraria from Novo Nordisk for involvement in lectures and advisory board work.
Open Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: James Guoxian Huang, Assistant Professor, Department of Paediatrics, Khoo Teck Puat - National University Children’s Medical Institute, National University Health System, 1E Kent Ridge Road NUHS Tower Block Level 12, Singapore 119228, Singapore.
Received: June 26, 2025
Revised: September 2, 2025
Accepted: December 2, 2025
Published online: January 27, 2026
Processing time: 216 Days and 9.2 Hours
Revised: September 2, 2025
Accepted: December 2, 2025
Published online: January 27, 2026
Processing time: 216 Days and 9.2 Hours
Core Tip
Core Tip: The escalating prevalence of pediatric metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) mirrors the rise in pediatric obesity. The advent of non-invasive diagnostics may allow for earlier recognition of liver fibrosis, and may prioritize the need for early pharmacological therapy. We propose an updated diagnostic and monitoring algorithm incorporating recent multi-societal statements in pediatric MASLD. The increased use of weight-loss pharmacotherapy such as glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonists in adolescent patients has shown efficacy in inducing weight loss, which may have potential in halting MASLD progression if instituted early in the disease course.