title: Paediatric nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a multicluster disease ranging from intrahepatic simple steatosis to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). During the last decade, NAFLD has reached epidemic proportions in overweight/obese children. In this manuscript, we review all recent advances in paediatric NAFLD.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Paediatric NAFLD displays some common aspects with the adult form of disease. However, recent findings have demonstrated that regarding development of NAFLD in children, due to the absence of long-time confounding factors, it may be more appropriate to investigate genetic and pathogenetic origins of the disease. Furthermore, as the histological pattern of paediatric NAFLD is different from those observed in adults, specific diagnostic/management programmes and diagnostic scores have been recently developed. Accordingly, several studies demonstrated that both lifestyle intervention and pharmacological treatments should be adequate to the specific pattern of NAFLD in children.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Results of this year's investigations further elucidated the histological features and genetic background that characterize paediatric NAFLD; the closed association of disease development with the cross-talk between different cells and organs; limitations of diagnostic tools borrowed from adult studies and the need of further clinical trial.
authors.affiliation: Liver Research Unit, Bambino Gesù Children's Hospital, IRCCS, and Department of Health Sciences, University of Rome Foro Italico, IRCCS, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Alisi
authors.forename: Guido
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Carpino
authors.forename: Valerio
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Nobili
mesh_terms: D002648:Child; D004032:Diet / Q000009:adverse effects; D005234:Fatty Liver / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology* / Q000628:therapy; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D008019:Life Style; D065626:Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease; D012307:Risk Factors