Combination therapy with pioglitazone/exenatide/metformin reduces the prevalence of hepatic fibrosis and steatosis: The efficacy and durability of initial combination therapy for type 2 diabetes (EDICT)

Automated shape-independent assessment of the spatial distribution of proton density fat fraction in vertebral bone marrow

This work proposes a method for automatic standardized assessment of bone marrow volume and spatial distribution of the proton density fat fraction (PDFF) in vertebral bodies. Intra- and interindividual variability in size and shape of vertebral bodies is a challenge for comparable interindividual evaluation and monitoring of changes in the composition and distribution of bone marrow due to aging and/or intervention. Based on deep learning image segmentation, bone marrow PDFF of single vertebral bodies is mapped to a cylindrical template and corrected for the inclination with respect to the horizontal plane. The proposed technique was applied and tested in a cohort of 60 healthy (30 males, 30 females) individuals. Obtained bone marrow volumes and mean PDFF values are comparable to former manual and (semi-)automatic approaches. Moreover, the proposed method allows shape-independent characterization of the spatial PDFF distribution inside vertebral bodies.

Gluco-regulation & type 2 diabetes: entrenched misconceptions updated to new governing principles for gold standard management

Our understanding of type 2 diabetes (T2D) has evolved dramatically. Advances have upended entrenched dogmas pertaining to the onset and progression of T2D, beliefs that have prevailed from the early era of diabetes research-and continue to populate our medical textbooks and continuing medical education materials. This review article highlights key insights that lend new governing principles for gold standard management of T2D. From the historical context upon which old beliefs arose to new findings, this article outlines evidence and perspectives on beta cell function, the underlying defects in glucoregulation, the remediable nature of T2D, and, the rationale supporting the shift to complication-centric prescribing. Practical approaches translate this rectified understanding of T2D into strategies that fill gaps in current management practices of prediabetes through late type 2 diabetes.

Diagnosis of hepatic steatosis and steatohepatitis in people with new-onset type 2 diabetes: a multidisciplinary approach

AIMS

Non-Alcoholic-Fatty-Liver-Disease (NAFLD) is the most common cause of chronic liver disease in Western countries; closely linked to obesity and type 2 diabetes (T2DM), it is an additional cardiovascular risk factor. The aim of this study is to investigate the prevalence of NAFLD at T2DM onset.

METHODS

122 newly diagnosed T2DM patients were enroled; NAFLD was diagnosed using ultrasound and fibrosis risk calculated with an FIB4-score. Intermediate and high-risk patients were referred to a hepatologist and underwent transient elastography (TE).

RESULTS

At T2DM diagnosis, 25% of patients were overweight, 47% were obese; ultrasound steatosis was present in 79% of patients; the average FIB-4 score was 1.4 (0.7). The NAFLD population was characterised by higher presence of obesity (60%, p 0.06); hypertension (56%, p 0.00); AST (26.3 (23.6) UI/L; p 0.00); ALT (49.3(41.0) UI/L p 0.00); FIB-4 score (1.6 (0.8); p 0.00). Among patients referred to a hepatologist, at TE, 65% had severe steatosis, 22% significant fibrosis and 25% advanced fibrosis.

CONCLUSION

This is the first proposal of a NAFLD screening model at T2DM diagnosis. The high prevalence of fibrosis found at the early stage T2DM confirms the compelling need for early management of NAFLD through cost-effective screening and long-term monitoring algorithms.

Empagliflozin Reduces Liver Fat in Individuals With and Without Diabetes

OBJECTIVE

To examine the effect of empagliflozin on liver fat content in individuals with and without type 2 diabetes (T2D) and the relationship between the decrease in liver fat and other metabolic actions of empagliflozin.

RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS

Thirty individuals with T2D and 27 without were randomly assigned to receive in double-blind fashion empagliflozin or matching placebo (2:1 ratio) for 12 weeks. Participants underwent 75-g oral glucose tolerance testing and measurement of liver fat content with MRS before therapy and at study end. Hepatic glucose production before the start of therapy was measured with 3-3H-glucose.

RESULTS

Empagliflozin caused an absolute reduction of 2.39% ± 0.79% in liver fat content compared with an increase of 0.91% ± 0.64% in participants receiving placebo (P < 0.007 with ANOVA). The decrease in liver fat was comparable in both individuals with diabetes and those without (2.75% ± 0.81% and 1.93% ± 0.78%, respectively; P = NS). The decrease in hepatic fat content caused by empagliflozin was strongly correlated with baseline liver fat content (r = -0.62; P < 0.001), decrease in body weight (r = 0.53; P < 0.001), and improvement in insulin sensitivity (r = -0.51; P < 0.001) but was not related to the decrease in fasting plasma glucose or HbA1c or the increase in hepatic glucose production.

CONCLUSIONS

Empagliflozin is effective in reducing liver fat content in individuals with and without T2D. The decrease in liver fat content is independent of the decrease in plasma glucose concentration and is strongly related to the decrease in body weight and improvement in insulin sensitivity.

Integrated traditional Chinese and Western medicine in the prevention and treatment of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease: future directions and strategies

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has been widely used for several centuries for metabolic diseases, including non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). At present, NAFLD has become the most prevalent form of chronic liver disease worldwide and can progress to non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), cirrhosis, and even hepatocellular carcinoma. However, there is still a lack of effective treatment strategies in Western medicine. The development of NAFLD is driven by multiple mechanisms, including genetic factors, insulin resistance, lipotoxicity, mitochondrial dysfunction, endoplasmic reticulum stress, inflammation, gut microbiota dysbiosis, and adipose tissue dysfunction. Currently, certain drugs, including insulin sensitizers, statins, vitamin E, ursodeoxycholic acid and betaine, are proven to be beneficial for the clinical treatment of NAFLD. Due to its complex pathogenesis, personalized medicine that integrates various mechanisms may provide better benefits to patients with NAFLD. The holistic view and syndrome differentiation of TCM have advantages in treating NAFLD, which are similar to the principles of personalized medicine. In TCM, NAFLD is primarily classified into five types based on clinical experience. It is located in the liver and is closely related to spleen and kidney functions. However, due to the multi-component characteristics of traditional Chinese medicine, its application in the treatment of NAFLD has been considerably limited. In this review, we summarize the advances in the pathogenesis and treatment of NAFLD, drawn from both the Western medicine and TCM perspectives. We highlight that Chinese and Western medicine have complementary advantages and should receive increased attention in the prevention and treatment of NAFLD.

One-hour post-load glucose levels are associated with hepatic steatosis assessed by transient elastography

AIM

To examine the association between 1-hour plasma glucose (PG) concentration and markers of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) assessed by transient elastography (TE).

METHODS

We performed TE in 107 metabolically well-characterized non-diabetic White individuals. Controlled attenuation parameter (CAP) was used to quantify liver steatosis, while liver stiffness marker (LS) was used to evaluate fibrosis.

RESULTS

Controlled attenuation parameter correlated significantly with 1-hour PG (r = 0.301, P < 0.01), fasting insulin (r = 0.285, P < 0.01), 2-hour insulin (r = 0.257, P < 0.02), homeostasis model assessment index of insulin resistance (r = 0.252, P < 0.01), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (r = -0.252, P < 0.02), body mass index (BMI; r = 0.248, P < 0.02) and age (r = 0.212, P < 0.03), after correction for age, sex and BMI. In a multivariable linear regression analysis, 1-hour PG (β = 0.274, P = 0.008) and fasting insulin levels (β = 0.225, P = 0.029) were found to be independent predictors of CAP. After excluding subjects with prediabetes, 1-hour PG was the sole predictor of CAP variation (β = 0.442, P < 0.001). In a logistic regression model, we observed that the group with 1-hour PG ≥  8.6 mmol/L (155 mg/dL) had a significantly higher risk of steatosis (odds ratio 3.98, 95% confidence interval 1.43-11.13; P = 0.008) than individuals with 1-hour PG <  8.6 mmol/L, after correction for potential confounders. No association was observed between 1-hour PG and LS.

CONCLUSION

Our data confirm that 1-hour PG ≥  8.6 mmol/L is associated with higher signs of NAFLD, even among individuals with normal glucose tolerance, categorized as low risk by canonical diagnostic standards. TE is a safe low-impact approach that could be employed for stratifying the risk profile in these patients, with a high level of accuracy.

Comparative review of algorithms and methods for chemical-shift-encoded quantitative fat-water imaging

PURPOSE

To propose a standardized comparison between state-of-the-art open-source fat-water separation algorithms for proton density fat fraction (PDFF) andR 2 * $$ {R}_2^{\ast } $$ quantification using an open-source multi-language toolbox.

METHODS

Eight recent open-source fat-water separation algorithms were compared in silico, in vitro, and in vivo. Multi-echo data were synthesized with varying fat-fractions, B0 off-resonance, SNR and TEs. Experimental evaluation was conducted using calibrated fat-water phantoms acquired at 3T and multi-site open-source phantoms data. Algorithms' performances were observed on challenging in vivo datasets at 3T. Finally, reconstruction algorithms were investigated with different fat spectra to evaluate the importance of the fat model.

RESULTS

In silico and in vitro results proved most algorithms to be not sensitive to fat-water swaps andB 0 $$ {\mathrm{B}}_0 $$ offsets with five or more echoes. However, two methods remained inaccurate even with seven echoes and SNR = 50, and two other algorithms' precision depended on the echo spacing scheme (p < 0.05). The remaining four algorithms provided reliable performances with limits of agreement under 2% for PDFF and 6 s-1 forR 2 * $$ {R}_2^{\ast } $$ . The choice of fat spectrum model influenced quantification of PDFF mildly (<2% bias) and ofR 2 * $$ {R}_2^{\ast } $$ more severely, with errors up to 20 s-1 .

CONCLUSION

In promoting standardized comparisons of MRI-based fat and iron quantification using chemical-shift encoded multi-echo methods, this benchmark work has revealed some discrepancies between recent approaches for PDFF andR 2 * $$ {R}_2^{\ast } $$ mapping. Explicit choices and parameterization of the fat-water algorithm appear necessary for reproducibility. This open-source toolbox further enables the user to optimize acquisition parameters by predicting algorithms' margins of errors.

Comparative efficacy of glucose-lowering drugs on liver steatosis as assessed by means of magnetic resonance imaging in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus: systematic review and network meta-analysis

PURPOSE

To assess the comparative efficacy of glucose-lowering drugs on liver steatosis as assessed by means of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in patients with T2D.

METHODS

We searched several databases and grey literature sources. Eligible trials had at least 12 weeks of intervention, included patients with T2D, and assessed the efficacy of glucose-lowering drugs as monotherapies. The primary outcome of interest was absolute reduction in liver fat content (LFC), assessed by means of MRI. Secondary efficacy outcomes were reduction in visceral and subcutaneous adipose tissue. We performed random effects frequentist network meta-analyses to estimate mean differences (MDs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). We ranked treatments based on P-scores.

RESULTS

We included 29 trials with 1906 patients. Sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 (SGLT-2) inhibitors (P-score 0.84) and glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs) (0.71) were the most efficacious in terms of liver fat content reduction. Among individual agents, empagliflozin was the most efficacious (0.86) and superior to pioglitazone (MD -5.7, 95% CI -11.2 to -0.3) (very low confidence). GLP-1 RAs had also the most favorable effects on visceral and subcutaneous adipose tissue.

CONCLUSIONS

GLP-1 RAs and SGLT-2 inhibitors seem to be the most efficacious glucose-lowering drugs for liver steatosis in patients with T2D. Assessment of their efficacy on NAFLD in patients irrespective of presence of T2D is encouraged.

In praise of pioglitazone: An economically efficacious therapy for type 2 diabetes and other manifestations of the metabolic syndrome

Pioglitazone improves glycaemic control, not only by lowering insulin resistance, but also by improving beta cell function. Because of the improved beta cell function the glycaemic control that occurs with pioglitazone is prolonged. Pioglitazone has positive effects not only on cardiac risk factors and surrogate measures of cardiovascular disease, it also lowers the incidence of cardiac events in patients with diabetes. The recurrence of transient ischaemic attack and ischaemic stroke is also reduced in non-diabetic, insulin-resistant subjects. Utilized at preclinical stages (but not later) of heart failure, pioglitazone improves diastolic function and avoids progression to heart failure. Pioglitazone, through suppression of atrial remodelling, also decreases the incidence of atrial fibrillation. The manifestations of diseases associated with insulin resistance (non-alcoholic steatohepatitis and polycystic ovary disease) are also improved with pioglitazone. Pioglitazone may possibly improve psoriasis and other dermopathies. Pioglitazone is therefore an inexpensive and efficacious drug for the insulin-resistant subject with diabetes that is underutilized because of biases that have evolved from the toxicities of other thiazolidinediones.

AWARE A novel web application to rapidly assess cardiovascular risk in type 2 diabetes mellitus

AIM

To describe the development of the AWARE App, a novel web application for the rapid assessment of cardiovascular risk in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) patients. We also tested the feasibility of using this App in clinical practice.

METHODS

Based on 2019 European Society of Cardiology/European Association for the Study of Diabetes criteria for cardiovascular risk stratification in T2DM, the AWARE App classifies patients into very high (VHCVR), high (HCVR) and moderate (MCVR) cardiovascular risk categories. In this retrospective clinical study, we employed the App to assess the cardiovascular risk of T2DM patients, while also collecting data about current glycaemic control and pharmacological treatment.

RESULTS

2243 T2DM consecutive patients were evaluated. 72.2% of the patients were VHCVR, 8.9% were HCVR, 0.8% were MCVR while 18.2% did not fit into any of the risk categories and were classified as "moderate-to-high" (MHCVR). Compared with the other groups, patients with VHCVD were more frequently ≥ 65 years old (68.9%), with a longer disease duration (≥ 10 years [56.8%]), a history of cardiovascular disease (41.4%), organ damage (35.5%) and a higher numbers of cardiovascular risk factors. Patients with MHCVD generally had disease duration < 10 years (96%), younger age (50-60 years [55%]), no history of cardiovascular disease, no organ damage, and 1-2 cardiovascular risk factors (89%). Novel drugs such as Glucagon Like Peptyde 1 Receptor Agonists or Sodium-Glucose Linked Transporter 2 inhibitors were prescribed only to 26.3% of the patients with VHCVR and to 24.7% of those with HCVR. Glycaemic control was unsatisfactory in this patients population (HbA1c 7.5 ± 3.4% [58.7 ± 13.4 mmol/mol]).

CONCLUSIONS

The AWARE App proved to be a practical tool for cardiovascular risk stratification of T2DM patients in real-world clinical practice.

Hepatic steatosis and advanced hepatic fibrosis are independent predictors of long-term mortality in acute myocardial infarction

AIM

To examine the prevalence and prognosis of hepatic steatosis and fibrosis in post-acute myocardial infarction (AMI) patients.

METHODS

Patients presenting with AMI to a tertiary hospital were examined from 2014 to 2021. Hepatic steatosis and advanced hepatic fibrosis were determined using the Hepatic Steatosis Index and fibrosis-4 index, respectively. The primary outcome was all-cause mortality. Cox regression models identified determinants of mortality after adjustments and Kaplan-Meier curves were constructed for all-cause mortality, stratified by hepatic steatosis and advanced fibrosis.

RESULTS

Of 5765 patients included, 24.8% had hepatic steatosis, of whom 41.7% were diagnosed with advanced fibrosis. The median follow-up duration was 2.7 years. Patients with hepatic steatosis tended to be younger, female, with elevated body mass index and an increased metabolic burden of diabetes, hypertension and hyperlipidaemia. Patients with hepatic steatosis (24.6% vs. 20.9% mortality, P < .001) and advanced fibrosis (45.6% vs. 32.9% mortality, P < .001) had higher all-cause mortality rates compared with their respective counterparts. Hepatic steatosis (adjusted hazard ratio 1.364, 95% CI 1.145-1.625, P = .001) was associated with all-cause mortality after adjustment for confounders. Survival curves showed excess mortality in patients with hepatic steatosis compared with those without (P = .002).

CONCLUSIONS

Hepatic steatosis and advanced fibrosis have a substantial prevalence among patients with AMI. Both are associated with mortality, with an incrementally higher risk when advanced fibrosis ensues. Hepatic steatosis and fibrosis could help risk stratification of AMI patients beyond conventional risk factors.