elderly alcoholic liver disease

Long-term excessive alcohol consumption, through ethanol itself and its derivative acetaldehyde, can cause repeated fatty degeneration, necrosis, and regeneration of hepatocytes, leading to alcoholic liver disease, including alcoholic fatty liver, alcoholic hepatitis, hepatic fibrosis, and cirrhosis. In European and American countries, alcoholic liver disease is one of the main causes of death in middle-aged and young adults. In recent years, the incidence of alcoholic liver disease in large cities in China has been rising rapidly. Its clinical manifestations are diverse; it usually initially presents as fatty liver, which can then progress to alcoholic hepatitis, alcoholic fibrosis, and alcoholic cirrhosis. Severe alcohol abuse can induce extensive hepatocyte necrosis or even liver failure.