SYSTEMATIC REVIEW article
Front. Nutr.
Sec. Nutrition and Metabolism
Volume 12 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fnut.2025.1689280
Research trends on the quality of life in patients with metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver diseases (MAFLD) : a scientific metrology study
Provisionally accepted
- Beijing Youan Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
Select one of your emails
You have multiple emails registered with Frontiers:
Notify me on publication
Please enter your email address:
If you already have an account, please login
You don't have a Frontiers account ? You can register here
Background: Metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) has become the most prevalent chronic liver disease globally, significantly impairing patients' quality of life (QOL) through complex interactions with metabolic comorbidities, psychological factors, and disease progression. Despite growing research interest, a comprehensive bibliometric analysis of QOL studies in MAFLD remains lacking. Methods: Publications focusing on MAFLD and QOL were retrieved from the Web of Science Core Collection and Scopus. Bibliometric data, including titles, authors, institutions, countries, keywords, and citations, were extracted and analyzed using Bibliometrix (R-package) and VOSviewer. Annual publication trends, geographical contributions, institutional collaborations, journal influence, author networks, and keyword evolution were visualized. Results: A total of 1,347 publications (2004–2025) were included, with an annual growth rate of 18.76%. The United States (n=368, 27.3%) was the most productive country, followed by China (n=171, 12.7%) and Italy (n=94, 7.0%). Leading institutions included the University of California System (n=67) and Harvard University (n=54). Key journals included Hepatology (n=27) and Journal of Hepatology (n=15). Keyword analysis identified five clusters: obesity management, metabolic health, MAFLD pathology, health impacts, and risk factors. Emerging trends focused on drug therapy, lifestyle interventions, and psychosocial support. Conclusions: Research on MAFLD patients' QOL is growing fast. Effective management needs integrated strategies (lifestyle, psychological support, multidisciplinary management, precision pharmacology) tailored to individuals. Future research should prioritize long-term data, clarity of mechanisms, and equitable interventions for patients' holistic well-being.
Keywords: bibliometric analysis, Quality of Life, MAFLD, Metabolic comorbidities, Research trends
Received: 20 Aug 2025; Accepted: 24 Sep 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Huang, Chen, Sun, Zhang and Liu. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Wei Liu, 252691159@qq.com
Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.