VCU Stravitz-Sanyal Institute for Liver Disease and Metabolic Health

We're delighted to share that VCU's Gastroenterology-Hepatology program is now ranked 8th worldwide by ! We're grateful to all our colleagues and staff for their commitment to excellence and to creating an environment to nurture the leaders of tomorrow and to improve the lives of our patients. https://bit.ly/4aOxzz9

LISTEN 👂 👂 In this episode of Healthy with Health, our chief clinical officer, Dr. Richard Sterling, describes how a simple calculation he created using routine blood tests has changed how screening for liver fibrosis & why early detection improves liver health. Find out more about the FIB-4 index test at https://bit.ly/4eBQP5l 🎙️🎧

How a Simple Blood Formula Can Detect Liver Disease Dr. Richard Sterling describes how a simple calculation using routine blood tests, called the FIB‑4 index, has changed how clinicians screen for liver fibrosis and why early detection improves liver health. Learn more about Richard Sterling, MD

📣Today is Global ! We are joining to raise awareness about . Now called steatotic liver disease, fatty liver disease is a silent global epidemic. Because symptoms are often subtle or absent, the disease remains widely underdiagnosed and underreported, despite its rapidly growing impact. By 2030, an estimated 357 million people worldwide are expected to be living with fatty liver disease.

The burden extends far beyond the liver. More than 70% of patients also live with obesity, up to 75% have type 2 diabetes, and 20–80% have hyperlipidemia, making fatty liver disease a critical driver of cardiometabolic risk. When left unchecked, it can progress to cirrhosis, liver cancer, and the need for liver transplantation.

English — Global Fatty Liver Day Print these materials at home! Steatotic Liver Disease: Who’s At Risk? (Quick guide) Steatotic (Fatty) Liver Disease: Am I at Risk? Have You Been Diagnosed with Steatotic (Fatty) Liver Disease? Know Your Liver Labs A Guide to Participating in Clinical Trials for Patients with MASLD/MA

📣Hoy es el día mundial del hígado graso! Nos unimos a Global Liver Institute para crear conciencia sobre la enfermedad del hígado graso.

Do you or a loved one need information about fatty liver disease in Spanish? Find patient guides written in Spanish at

Spanish — Global Fatty Liver Day Print these materials at home! Guía para pacientes con MASLD/MASH sobre la participación en ensayos clínicos ¿Estoy en riesgo de enfermedad hepática esteatósica (hígado graso)? 10 preguntas para hacerle a mi médico ¿Le han diagnosticado enfermedad hepática esteatósica (hígado graso)? Con

A new study involving a VCU hepatologist shows that the experimental weight loss drug survodutide helps people lose significant weight and shed large amounts of fat from their livers.

84% of those in the study who were given survodutide were able to reduce their liver fat by at least 30%, while only 24% of those given the placebo had the same outcomes. Additionally, 61% of those using survodutide reduced the amount of fat in their liver to a normal level.

Scarring occurs when fat builds up in the liver, inflaming the tissue. As it progresses, it leads to metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD). Over time, it can result in cirrhosis and even liver failure, requiring a liver transplant. It is also linked to cardiovascular and metabolic diseases.

The study's senior author, our director Dr. Arun Sanyal, said: “This trial demonstrates the potential benefits of survodutide even in those with earlier stages of MASLD, which commonly occurs in those with obesity. It builds on prior demonstration of benefit in those with more advanced scarring of the liver due to MASLD. Together they provide evidence that survodutide can improve MASLD along its entire spectrum of severity."

Worldwide, about 1 in 3 people have MASLD, making it a major public health concern. Only two drugs in the United States — resmetirom and Wegovy — are approved to treat it. The paper was published by Nature Medicine.

New study reveals turbocharged GLP-1 drug helps shed body weight and fat in the liver | VCU Health An experimental weight loss drug helped people lose significant weight and shed large amounts of fat from their livers, according to newly published research by a team of international experts, including a Virginia Commonwealth University hepatologist. 

Did you know? Hepatitis A, hepatitis B, and hepatitis C are all spread differently. Learn ways you can reduce your risk for each type of : https://bit.ly/3YGRSYJ

ABCs of Viral Hepatitis Learn the key facts about hepatitis A, hepatitis B, and hepatitis C like prevention and treatment.

It's Month. The term "hepatitis" means inflammation of the liver. This can be due to a variety of causes. Usually, it refers to a group of viral infections that affect the . The liver is one of the most important organs in the body because it filters your blood. The most common types of viral hepatitis in the United States are A, B, and C. Left untreated, hepatitis B and hepatitis C can damage your liver and even lead to liver cancer. Learn more about the disease and where you can get tested in Virginia from the state department of health: https://bit.ly/48AbgfN

Viral Hepatitis - Disease Prevention The term "hepatitis" means inflammation of the liver. This can be due to a variety of causes. Usually, it refers to a group of viral infections that affect the liver. The liver is one of the most important organs in the body because it filters your blood. The most common types of viral hepatitis in....

In a new review in , a team of -led researchers describe new efforts that aim to find earlier, easier ways to tell who is at risk for alcohol-linked liver damage and who needs help now. https://bit.ly/4uMHEV9

It's . New mothers, have you been tested? In , the state department of health offers free testing and vaccines to pregnant women and infants born to women who test positive for Hepatitis B. https://bit.ly/4umQsk6

Virginia Perinatal Hepatitis B Prevention (VPHBP) Program - Immunization The goal of the VPHBP Program is to eliminate hepatitis B by working closely with local health departments, hospitals, and healthcare providers to prevent the perinatal transmission of the disease. When hepatitis B virus (HBV) positive pregnant women, their household contacts, and their sexual partn...

May 20 is Clinical Trials Day, an opportunity celebrate the individuals who participate in clinical trials. It's held in recognition of what is often considered the start of the first randomized clinical trial (what can cure scurvy?). It is also a chance to emphasize that despite the tremendous progress we have made, there are many new medical challenges yet to solve. Watch our video to hear from Institute Director Dr. Arun Sanyal and Chief Scientific Officer Dr. Saul Karpen about why clinical research is crucial to hepatology and our patients. https://bit.ly/4d5v4Ky

Why clinical research is crucial Our director, Arun Sanyal, M.D., and chief research officer, Saul Karpen, M.D., Ph.D., explain why clinical research and patient participation is crucial to ...