The fat will disappear if alcohol is avoided for weeks or months. In many people who continue to drink the fatty change persists to a greater or lesser extent throughout their life without any significant problems, but in some the liver goes on to develop alcoholic hepatitis or cirrhosis. Alcoholic Hepatitis This is a serious condition in which the liver is inflamed due to the effects of alcohol. The symptoms can vary from one person to another and range from discomfort, nausea and pain all over the abdomen, to profound and progressive jaundice which may lead to death within a few weeks. Hepatitis can also develop without causing any symptoms.
Treatment is to stop drinking alcohol which removes the cause of the inflammation.
The onset of cirrhosis is usually silent with few early warning symptoms. Cirrhosis is the result of continual long term liver damage. If the liver is damaged for a short time some of the cells die and the liver regrows to its original size and shape. When the inflammation is severe and continuous, scar tissue, called fibrosis develops. In addition, the liver regrows imperfectly.