The burden of chronic liver disease in west Africa: a time for action
C Wendy Spearman
Abstract
The burden of chronic liver disease in sub-Saharan Africa is high, with cirrhosis and other chronic liver diseases accounting for 2·5% of deaths and 1·3% of total disability-adjusted life-years in 2019.1 The most prevalent causes of cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma in sub-Saharan Africa are chronic viral hepatitis (hepatitis B, C, and D), heavy alcohol use, aflatoxin B1 exposure, and, increasingly, metabolic risk factors associated with metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD).
Topics & Concepts
Hepatocellular carcinomaMedicineCirrhosisChronic liver diseaseLiver diseaseHepatitis CLiver cancerAlcoholic liver diseaseFatty liverDiseaseInternal medicineObservational studyCancerViral hepatitisEnvironmental healthLiver Disease Diagnosis and TreatmentLiver Disease and TransplantationHepatitis B Virus Studies