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World J Gastroenterol. Oct 7, 2014; 20(37): 13306-13324
Published online Oct 7, 2014. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v20.i37.13306
Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and vascular disease: State-of-the-art
Silvia Fargion, Marianna Porzio, Anna Ludovica Fracanzani
Silvia Fargion, Marianna Porzio, Anna Ludovica Fracanzani, Department of Pathophysiology and Transplantation, Metabolic Liver Diseases Research Center, Ca’ Granda IRCCS Foundation, Policlinico Hospital Pad Granelli, 20122 Milano, Italy
Author contributions: Fargion S, Porzio M and Fracanzani AL contributed equally to the manuscript.
Correspondence to: Silvia Fargion, Professor of Medicine, Department of Pathophysiology and Transplantation, Metabolic Liver Diseases Research Center, Ca’ Granda IRCCS Foundation, Policlinico Hospital Pad Granelli, via F Sforza 35, 20122 Milano, Italy. silvia.fargion@unimi.it
Telephone: +39-255-033302 Fax: +39-250-320296
Received: January 24, 2014
Revised: May 2, 2014
Accepted: July 29, 2014
Published online: October 7, 2014
Processing time: 256 Days and 10.2 Hours
Core Tip

Core tip: Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is emerging as an independent risk factor for the occurrence and progression of cardiovascular disease. In this review we have systematically analyzed the correlation between NAFLD and cardiovascular diseases (CVD) focusing on the different aspects of CVD (increased carotid intima media thickness, increased arterial stiffness, endhotelial dysfunction, impaired left ventricular function, coronary calcification, epicardic fat), on the clinical manifestations (obstructive sleep apnea syndrome, clinical consequences of microangiopathy), and on the underlying physiopathogenic mechanisms (insulin resistance, atherogenic dyslipidemia, inflammation, oxidative stress, adipokynes imbalance, coagulation imbalance, increased assumption of fructose). Furthermore, we emphasized that NAFLD, by itself, is probably an independent risk factor for the occurrence of CVD.