Association of Serum Albumin Levels and Long-Term Prognosis in Patients with Biopsy-Confirmed Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease

The relationship between baseline serum albumin level and long-term prognosis of patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) remains unknown. This is a sub-analysis of the CLIONE (Clinical Outcome Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease) study. The main outcomes were: death or orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT), liver-related death, and liver-related events (hepatocellular carcinoma [HCC], decompensated cirrhosis, and gastroesophageal varices/bleeding). 1383 Japanese patients with biopsy-confirmed NAFLD were analyzed. They were divided into 3 groups based on serum albumin: high (>4.0 g/dL), intermediate (3.5–4.0 g/dL), and low (p p < 0.001). Among biopsy-confirmed NAFLD patients, those with intermediate or low serum albumin had a significantly higher risk of death or OLT than those with high serum albumin