['In non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NALFD), it has often been assumed that an elevation in serum ferritin is likely related to inflammation rather than iron overload.', 'Patients referred with NAFLD were entered into a clinical study of phlebotomy therapy. A liver biopsy with liver iron concentration was done at entry and 6 months after phlebotomy (n = 56) until the patient had a low serum ferritin or developed anemia. Serum ferritin was compared to liver iron concentration, ESR, CRP, BMI and grade of inflammation on liver biopsy.', 'Iron removed by phlebotomy in NAFLD correlated with the decrease in serum ferritin (r = 0.57, p = 0.0014) and liver iron concentration (r = 0.57, p = 0.0013). There was no significant correlations between serum ferritin and ESR, CRP or grade of liver inflammation.'] Is inflammation the cause of an elevated serum ferritin in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease?