MetALD Assessment and the Role of Advanced Practice Providers
Access expert-led MASH tools for diagnosis, staging, and management. Developed by GHAPP faculty specifically for APPs in community GI and li
As clinicians work through the challenges posed by the overlap of metabolic dysfunction and alcohol-related liver injury, the importance of advanced practice providers (APPs) and MetALD assessment has increased. Metabolic dysfunction-associated alcohol liver disease (MetALD) is a complicated syndromic presentation of metabolic liver disease complicated by alcohol, requiring detailed diagnostic workup, a structured and tailored clinical approach, and an intelligent management plan. In this context, APPs have an unparalleled opportunity to spearhead initiatives that focus on the early identification, risk assessment, clinical judgment, and the overall clinical management of patients with metabolic and alcohol-related co-morbidities. APPs, through evidence-based learning and the collaborative tools available at the MASLD Community Network, can improve their knowledge of MetALD assessment and adopt evidence-based approaches to optimize the clinical management of liver disease at various stages of metabolic liver disease.
At the core of improving early detection, risk assessment, clinical reasoning, and holistic patient care, is MetALD evaluation and the extended role of advanced practice providers. Through the combination of rigid screening, non-invasive fibrosis evaluation, alcohol counseling, metabolic optimization, and multidisciplinary teamwork, advanced practice providers can alleviate the burden of liver-related problems in the long term. With the educational materials and expert collaboration offered through the MetALD Community Network, advanced practice providers have the tools to offer consistent, evidence-based MetALD care, thereby enhancing liver and metabolic health.
