Statin use and histopathological change in patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Article Category: Review article
Published Online: Dec 31, 2018
Page range: 3 - 13
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/abm-2018-0026
Keywords
© 2018 Pakkapon Rattanachaisit et al., published by Sciendo
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 License.
Background
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is one of the major causes of chronic liver disease. The primary treatment of NAFLD by statins has not been clearly elucidated.
Objectives
To evaluate the effectiveness of statin use in patients with biopsy-proven NAFLD or non-alcoholic steatohepatitis on the change in liver histology.
Methods
We searched MEDLINE, Scopus, Google Scholar, and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials for clinical trials and observational studies investigating the effects of statins on histological change regardless of type or dosage from inception to December 2015. Random-effect model meta-analyses were used to compute changes in outcomes of interest. The study protocol was registered in advance with the International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO 2016 CRD42016033132).
Results
We identified 6 studies (111 patients), representing 5 cohort studies and 1 randomized controlled clinical trial. There was significant decrease in steatosis grading with a standardized mean difference of –2.580 (95% confidence interval [CI] –4.623 to –0.536;
Conclusions
Statin use can possibly reduce the extent of steatohepatitis but not the stage of fibrosis. Further randomized controlled studies to assess histological evidence with adequate sample size and duration are required in order to establish the role of statin as a primary treatment of NAFLD.