In brief
The phrase "signs of fatty liver" in a report appears more often than almost any other. It is often ignored, and wrongly so: what matters is not the fat itself but what it can turn into.
The build-up of fat in liver cells, unrelated to alcohol misuse, is closely linked to excess weight, insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes and lipid metabolism disorders. In recent years international societies have revised the terminology to emphasise the metabolic nature of the disease. It is the most common liver condition in the world, and it remains without symptoms for a long time.
Steatosis in itself is reversible. The problem is that in some patients it progresses to inflammation and then to fibrosis — the replacement of liver tissue with scar tissue. It is the stage of fibrosis, not the amount of fat, that determines the prognosis. The modern approach is therefore built not around the question "is there fat" but around the question "is there fibrosis, and how advanced is it".
Standard ultrasound detects steatosis well and grades it visually, and a special technique — ultrasound steatometry — determines the percentage of fat fairly accurately. But a standard ultrasound does not measure tissue stiffness and therefore does not answer the question of fibrosis. So a report saying "fatty liver" tells you nothing by itself about severity or prognosis.
The method measures the stiffness of liver tissue: the more advanced the fibrosis, the stiffer and less elastic the tissue — hence the name of the method. The examination is painless, takes just a few minutes, requires no biopsy and gives a numerical result that can be compared over time. This is essential: repeating the measurement a year later shows whether the process is moving forwards or backwards. At GMS ultrasound elastography of the liver is AED 1,200.
Assess the metabolic background: glucose and glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c), lipid profile, liver enzymes and, where indicated, an extended liver disease profile (AED 2,000). The next decision is made by the doctor together with you.
The only intervention with reliably proven effect is weight loss. Losing around 7–10% of body weight can reduce not only steatosis but inflammation as well. Regular physical activity, control of blood sugar and lipids, and limiting alcohol also work. Liver-protecting supplements without proven efficacy are no substitute for this.
At GMS an abdominal ultrasound is AED 1,200 and elastography AED 1,200, performed by a diagnostic ultrasound specialist, PhD. Further management is with the gastroenterologist in the same clinic, AED 750.
It means fat has built up in liver cells — a condition closely linked to excess weight, insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes and lipid disorders. On its own the phrase says nothing about severity or prognosis: those depend on the stage of fibrosis, which a standard ultrasound does not assess.
A standard ultrasound detects steatosis and grades it visually but cannot measure tissue stiffness. Elastography measures stiffness directly: the more advanced the fibrosis, the stiffer the tissue. It is painless, takes a few minutes, needs no biopsy and gives a numerical result you can compare a year later. At GMS it costs AED 1,200.
Steatosis is reversible. The only intervention with reliably proven effect is weight loss: losing around 7–10% of body weight reduces not only fat but inflammation too. Regular physical activity, control of blood sugar and lipids and limiting alcohol also help; liver-protecting supplements without proven efficacy are no substitute.
This article is for information only and does not replace a consultation. If you have symptoms, see a doctor.
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