The studies on alcohol’s effects on liver
Author, year | Study design | Number of patients | Alcohol amount and duration | Conclusion |
---|---|---|---|---|
Roerecke et al, 2019 [19] | Systematic review and meta-analysis | 2.5 million participants, 5,500 cirrhosis | > 1 drinks/day for women; ≥ 5 drinks/day for men | The risk increased beyond consumption of one drink or more per day. However, risks varied widely and the analysis of case-control studies showed no risk increase for consumption of 1–4 drinks/day |
Simpson et al, 2019 [30] | Prospective cohort study | 401,806 middle-aged female | ≥ 15 drinks/week (mean 220 g alcohol) | Cirrhosis incidence increases with total alcohol intake, even at moderate levels of consumption |
Sinn et al, 2022 [43] | Nationwide cohort study | 367,612 patients without liver disease | < 40 g/day for women, < 60 g/day for men | Small amounts of alcohol intake were associated with increased liver-related and all-cause mortality among individuals with elevated ALT levels |
Mitchell et al, 2018 [44] | Case-control | 187 biopsy-proven NAFLD | < 70 g/week | Modest (1–70 g/week) alcohol consumption, particularly wine in a non-binge pattern, is associated with lower fibrosis in patients with NAFLD |
Ferri et al, 2022 [45] | Case-control | 276 patients with NAFLD (alcohol consumption up to 140 g/week for women; 210 g/week for men) | < 70 g/week | Very low alcohol usage is associated with a lower prevelance of cirrhosis and HCC in patients with NAFLD |
Llamosas-Falcón et al, 2024 [46] | Systematic review and meta-analysis | 5 million participants, 15,150 liver cirrhosis | > 25 g/day | Alcohol consumption over 25 g/day is associated with higher morbidity and mortality rates in liver cirrhosis. Additionally, this relation is positively correlated with alcohol amount per day |
Åberg et al, 2020 [47] | Follow-up cohort | 8,345 patients with hepatic steatosis | 10–19 g/day | Doubled the risk for advanced liver disease compared to lifetime abstainers. 0–9 g/day intake is associated with 21% all-cause mortality risk reduction |
Zhu et al, 2024 [33] | Retrospective cohort | 2,630 patients with MAFLD | ≥ 8 drinks/week for women and ≥ 15 drinks/week for men | Higher weekly alcohol consumption was significantly associated with all-cause and cause-specific mortality. > 2 drinks/week is associated with all-cause mortality |
Israelsen et al, 2024 [34] | Prospective cohort | 446 patients with excessive alcohol intake | > 24 g/day for women and > 36 g/day for men | The risk of decompensation increased in a stepwise manner from MASLD, through Met ALD, to ALD |
ALD: alcoholic liver disease; ALT: alanine transaminase; HCC: hepatocellular carcinoma; MAFLD: metabolic-associated fatty liver disease; MASLD: metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease; MetALD: metabolic dysfunction and alcohol-related liver disease; NAFLD: non-alcoholic fatty liver disease