Steatosis

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In cellular pathology, steatosis is a condition which is a marker of sublethal cellular injury. It is also known as fatty change. It is characterised by the presence of abnormally large quantities of fat within a cell. Steatosis may affect the cells of a variety of tissues and organs. It reflects an impairment of the normal process of constant synthesis and breakdown of triglyceride fat.

Steatosis may occur in the liver as a result of a variety of stresses, including hepatitis C and exposure to poisons such as ethanol (alcohol) and in obesity. The fat accumulates in vesicles that displace the cytoplasm. When the vesicles are sufficiently large that they distort the nucleus, the condition is known as macrovesicular steatosis. Otherwise the condition is known as microvesicular steatosis.

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