Fatty liver disease, the lay term for Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatotic Liver Disease (MASLD), is a common condition that affects one in three people in Australia.1 It was previously referred to as Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD).
In some people, the build-up of fat in the liver leads to inflammation and liver damage which can progress to liver disease and liver cancer.
Early detection is the key to preventing these outcomes.
Having hepatitis C increases the risk of developing fatty liver disease.2 Unfortunately, curing hepatitis C doesn’t cure fatty liver disease and people can remain at risk of liver damage after hepatitis C treatment.3
People who have hepatitis B and fatty liver disease have a significantly higher risk of liver damage
Hepatitis B doesn’t increase the risk of fatty liver disease but because fatty liver is so common it’s thought that as many as 60 per cent of people with hepatitis B also have the condition.4
People who have hepatitis B and fatty liver disease have a significantly higher risk of liver damage, even when their hepatitis B is being treated.4
People who are overweight/obese or have metabolic disorders (diabetes, high cholesterol) are very likely to have fatty liver disease and should be screened for it.
This is particularly important if they also have viral hepatitis.
Fatty liver disease is mostly treated with diet and exercise and some helpful resources are included with this alert.
A good starting point for people who need to manage the condition is The Fatty Liver Diet from the Liver Foundation which includes a 12 week program of emails to help people make changes to their diet and activity levels.
The Hepatitis SA Library has a good collection of resources on fatty liver which you can browse here.
- “Fatty Liver.” Healthdirect Australia, 2025. https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/fatty-liver. ↩︎
- Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease and Hepatitis: is there a link?” HealthCentral, 2024. https://www.healthcentral.com/article/hepatitis-c-and-fatty-liver-disease. ↩︎
- Noureddin, Mazen, Micaela M. Wong, Tsuyoshi Todo, et al “Fatty Liver in Hepatitis C Patients Post-Sustained Virological Response with Direct-Acting Antivirals.” World Journal of Gastroenterology 24, no. 11 (2018): 1269–77. https://doi.org/10.3748/wjg.v24.i11.1269. ↩︎
- “Liver Fat Affects the Prognosis for Chronic Hepatitis B.” Research Features, November 30, 2020. https://researchfeatures.com/liver-fat-affects-prognosis-chronic-hepatitis-b/ ↩︎
- “Liver Fat Affects the Prognosis for Chronic Hepatitis B.” Research Features, November 30, 2020. https://researchfeatures.com/liver-fat-affects-prognosis-chronic-hepatitis-b/ ↩︎
Last updated 10 November 2026
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