Intestinal Failure-Associated Liver Disease: Current Understanding and Recent Advances

Intestinal failure (IF) can result from diverse etiologies, including surgical interventions and congenital defects, often leading to parenteral nutrition dependence. IF-associated liver disease (IFALD) is a serious and life-threatening complication of IF. IFALD is multifactorial leading to cholestasis during phase I, and steatosis and fibrosis during phase II. Diagnosis and screening remain challenging due to the lack of consensus criteria, and management requires a multidisciplinary intestinal rehabilitation approach. Despite these challenges, outcomes including survival and quality of life of patients with IF have improved over the past decade leading to lower rates of liver and small bowel transplants.