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Clinical epidemiology of metabolic-associated steatotic liver disease in children and adolescents: The LiverKids Study

Ingrid ARTEAGA, Carla CHACÓN, Alba MARTÍNEZ-ESCUDÉ, Meritxell CARMONA-CEVELLÓ, Irene RUIZ-ROJANO, Ana María RIBATALLADA-DIEZ, Guillem PERA, Galadriel DIEZ-FADRIQUE, Pere TORÁN-MONSERRAT and Carmen EXPÓSITO-MARTÍNEZ

Recent epidemiological studies using non-invasive methods to screen for liver fibrosis in adults have reported a marked increase in the of metabolic-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD). MASLD is mainly associated with overweight and obesity. The prevalence of overweight and obesity in children and adolescents has also increased rapidly in recent years. Transient elastography (TE) with controlled attenuation parameter (CAP) is a non-invasive diagnostic method for determining fibrosis and steatosis, but little is known about its applicability in the pediatric population. Magnetic resonance imaging with proton density fat fraction (MRI-PDFF) is highly accurate for the diagnosis of steatosis, but its complexity and cost makes unavailable.