Saroglitazar may lower cardiovascular risk in NAFLD

Treatment with the dual PPAR α/γ agonist saroglitazar helps improve the serum atherogenic lipoprotein profile in patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), regardless of comorbid conditions and statin use, as shown in a study.

A total of 221 patients with NAFLD who participated in phase II and III double-blinded, placebo-controlled randomized clinical trials were included in the study. Researchers pooled data to evaluate the impact of saroglitazar magnesium 4 mg on traditional lipids, very low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (VLDL-C), and small dense LDL-C (sdLDL-C).

Of the patients, 130 had received saroglitazar and 91 placebo. Compared with placebo, treatment with saroglitazar led to significant improvements in total cholesterol (–17 mg/dL, 95 percent confidence interval [CI], –24 to 9; p<0.001), triglyceride (–45 mg/dL, 95 percent CI, –60 to 31; p<0.001), LDL-C (–8 mg/dL, 95 percent CI, –15 to –1; p=0.01), and VLDL-C (–8 mg/dL, 95 percent CI, –14 to –3; p<0.001).

Saroglitazar also improved the highly atherogenic sdLDL-C (–10 mg/dL, 95 percent CI, –17 to –2; p=0.01). The improvements in serum lipids with saroglitazar were seen as early as 4–6 weeks after initiation of therapy, with the effects persisting throughout the duration of therapy.

In subgroup analyses, saroglitazar significantly improved serum lipids of patients with either diabetes or hypertension.

The findings highlight the potential of saroglitazar not only to affect liver disease positively but also to reduce cardiovascular risk in patients with NAFLD.