[Frequency of diagnosed non-alcololic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in the German population - An analysis based on health insurance data]. / Die Häufigkeit von diagnostizierten Fettlebererkrankungen (NAFLD) in der deutschen Bevölkerung ­ Eine Analyse auf der Basis von GKV-Routinedaten.

BACKGROUND: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is one of the most common chronic liver diseases in Germany. In the long term, there is an increased risk of developing liver cirrhosis and subsequent diseases. Epidemiologic studies on NAFLD prevalence in Germany are scarce. The aim of the study was to assess administrative incidence and prevalence or, more specifically, the number of patients diagnosed with NAFLD in the period from 2008 to 2018. METHODS: Analyses are based on administrative data of a large statutory health insurance fund. All individuals who were insured in the year of analysis and in the three-year pre-observation period were included (between 1.7-2 million insured per analysis year). NAFLD-patients were identified using relevant ICD-10 codes (K76.0 und K75.8). RESULTS: In 2018, 4.66 % of insured persons had a NAFLD diagnosis, 0.87 % were diagnosed first-time. Diagnoses of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) were comparatively rare (0.09 %). Data show an uptake of NAFLD diagnoses over time. The number of incident cases per year has hardly changed. Patients with diseases of the metabolic syndrome had an increased chance of being diagnosed with NAFLD. CONCLUSION: It becomes evident that NAFLD is frequently diagnosed in everyday medical practice, although data from population-based studies suggest an even higher prevalence.