The prevalence of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) is increasing. NASH confers an increased risk of liver-related morbidity and mortality with a substantial risk of developing liver cirrhosis. At present, there is no established medical treatment for NASH. The pathogenesis of NASH is incompletely understood. Several lines of evidence suggest that TNF-alpha may be involved in the pathogenesis of NASH by promoting liver inflammation, insulin resistance and hepatocyte apoptosis. Anti-TNF-alpha therapy has not been evaluated for the treatment of NASH. We report here on a patient with NASH who has experienced rapid normalization of liver biochemistry during treatment of an associated rheumatoid arthritis with the humanized anti-TNF-alpha antibody adalimumab. This observation suggests that pilot studies may be warranted to evaluate the role of adalimumab for the treatment of NASH.
The prevalence of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) is increasing. NASH confers an increased risk of liver-related morbidity and mortality with a substantial risk of developing liver cirrhosis. At present, there is no established medical treatment for NASH. The pathogenesis of NASH is incompletely understood. Several lines of evidence suggest that TNF-alpha may be involved in the pathogenesis of NASH by promoting liver inflammation, insulin resistance and hepatocyte apoptosis. Anti-TNF-alpha therapy has not been evaluated for the treatment of NASH. We report here on a patient with NASH who has experienced rapid normalization of liver biochemistry during treatment of an associated rheumatoid arthritis with the humanized anti-TNF-alpha antibody adalimumab. This observation suggests that pilot studies may be warranted to evaluate the role of adalimumab for the treatment of NASH.