AUTHOR=Liu Jiaye , Mu Chunyang , Li Kewei , Luo Han , Liu Yong , Li Zhihui 

TITLE=Estimating Global Prevalence of Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Fatty Liver Disease in Overweight or Obese Children and Adolescents: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

JOURNAL=International Journal of Public Health

VOLUME=66

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.ssph-journal.org/journals/international-journal-of-public-health/articles/10.3389/ijph.2021.1604371

DOI=10.3389/ijph.2021.1604371

ISSN=1661-8564

ABSTRACT=<p><bold>Objectives:</bold> Metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) is a new terminology updated from non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). We aim to estimate the global prevalence of MAFLD in overweight or obese children and adolescents, by repurposing existing data on fatty liver disease.</p><p><bold>Methods:</bold> We screened relevant articles published up to December 2020. Pooled prevalence was calculated using Logit transformations.</p><p><bold>Results:</bold> Our search returned 35,441 records, of which 156 studies fulfilled the inclusion criteria. The overall prevalence of MAFLD was 33.78% in the general population and 44.94% in a special population based on child obesity clinics, regardless of the diagnostic techniques. For subgroup analysis, MAFLD prevalence was significantly higher in boys compared to girls (36.05 vs. 26.84% in the general population; 50.20 vs. 35.34% in the child obesity clinics-based population). Interestingly, based on study source, the pooled prevalence of MAFLD was 1.5-fold higher in other “fatty liver disease” studies compared to the classical “NAFLD” studies in the general population.</p><p><bold>Conclusion:</bold> MAFLD is highly prevalent in overweight or obese children and adolescents. Raising awareness and urgent actions are warranted to control the MAFLD pandemic across the globe.</p>