death from fatty liver??help please

[sistah]

I received an autopsy report on a family member who died suddenly at home a few months ago. Her cause of death was listed as macrovescular hepatic steatosis. It also said there was no cirrhosis. She was an alcoholic. Help me understand this as this doesn't seem possible to me. thankx

[imkindly]

Sorry to hear about your family member.
Alcohol can cause "fatty liver".
"Steato" means fat.

There are three types of fatty liver:

1. If a biopsy shows liver inflammation and scar tissue, or if fibrosis has occurred, "steatohepatitis" is diagnosed.

2. Steatohepatitis may be associated with alcohol use, but if the liver damage is unrelated to alcohol, the condition is called "non-alcoholic steatohepatitis" (NASH).

3. Fatty liver without inflammation is referred to as "steatosis".

You can read more about it at
http://www.cpmc.org/advanced/liver/patients/topics/fatty_liver.html