The rate of U.S. teenagers with advanced fatty liver disease, or non-alcoholic steatophepatitis (NASH), has followed a sharp upward trend since the late 1980s and early 1990s, MedPage Today reports. Liver fibrosis rates among this demographic have not changed significantly, however.

Researchers analyzed data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), examining the results of those who were 12 to 18 years old at the time they were surveyed. They divided their findings into three time periods: 1988 to 1994, 1995 to 2004 and 2005 to 2010.

According to various markers, 0.73 percent of teenagers in the survey likely had NASH during the earliest time period, compared with 3.1 percent in the middle period and 3.4 percent in the most recent period.

For every year of age, the risk of NASH increased by 20 percent. Males had a 40 percent greater risk of NASH compared with females. For each increase in body-mass index (BMI) category, the risk of NASH more than doubled. Compared with whites, blacks were half as likely to have NASH, while Mexican Americans were 40 percent more likely to have the liver condition.

To read the MedPage Today article, click here.