Copyright: ©Author(s) 2026. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license. No commercial re-use. See permissions. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc.
World J Hepatol. Mar 27, 2026; 18(3): 113284
Published online Mar 27, 2026. doi: 10.4254/wjh.v18.i3.113284
Published online Mar 27, 2026. doi: 10.4254/wjh.v18.i3.113284
Metabolically associated fatty liver disease: What hepatologists need to know about this systemic disease
Alexander Plakida, Olga Iushkovska, Department of Physical Rehabilitation, Sports Medicine and Physical Training, Odessa National Medical University, Odessa 65000, Ukraine
Lidia Elżbieta Sierpińska, Department of Nursing, Military Clinical Hospital No. 1 With Polyclinic, Lublin 20-049, Poland
Author contributions: Plakida A and Iushkovska O contributed equally to this work; Plakida AL and Iushkovska O conceptualised and designed the study, created the artwork, supervised, and made critical revisions; Sierpinska LE conducted the literature review, did the analysis, interpretation of data, and drafted the original manuscript; all authors prepared the draft and approved the submitted version.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors declare no conflict of interest for this article.
Corresponding author: Alexander Plakida, MD, PhD, Professor, Department of Physical Rehabilitation, Sports Medicine and Physical Training, Odessa National Medical University, Valikhovsky Lane, 2, Odessa 65000, Ukraine. aplakida01@gmail.com
Received: August 21, 2025
Revised: September 23, 2025
Accepted: January 9, 2026
Published online: March 27, 2026
Processing time: 217 Days and 17.6 Hours
Revised: September 23, 2025
Accepted: January 9, 2026
Published online: March 27, 2026
Processing time: 217 Days and 17.6 Hours
Core Tip
Core Tip: Metabolically associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) is the new term replacing non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Today, it is the most common chronic liver disease worldwide, affecting approximately 38% of the world's population. This comprehensive review offers insight into the various aspects of MAFLD, focusing on terminology, epidemiology, new findings on pathophysiology, key clinical factors, and current treatment options.