Effects of coenzyme Q(10) on cardiovascular and metabolic biomarkers in overweight and obese patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus: a pooled analysis

BACKGROUND: The potential effects of coenzyme Q10 (CoQ(10)) supplementation in overweight/obese patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus are not fully established. In this article, we aimed to perform a pooled analysis to investigate the effects of CoQ(10) intervention on cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors in overweight/obese patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). METHODS: MEDLINE, Embase, and Cochrane databases were searched for randomized controlled trials that evaluated the changes in CVD risk factors among overweight and obese patients with T2DM following CoQ(10) supplementation. Two investigators independently assessed articles for inclusion, extracted data, and assessed risk of bias. Major endpoints were synthesized as weighted mean differences (WMDs) with 95% CIs. Subgroup analyses were performed to check the consistency of effect sizes across groups. Publication bias and sensitivity analysis were also performed. RESULTS: Fourteen eligible trials with 693 overweight/obese diabetic subjects were included for pooling. CoQ(10) interventions significantly reduced fasting blood glucose (FBG; −0.59 mmol/L; 95% CI, −1.05 to −0.12; P=0.01), hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c; –0.28%; 95% CI−0.53 to −0.03; P=0.03), and triglyceride (TG) levels (0.17 mmol/L; 95% CI, −0.32 to −0.03; P=0.02). Subgroup analysis also showed that low-dose consumption of CoQ(10) (<200 mg/d) effectively reduces the values of FBG, HbA1c, fasting blood insulin, homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance, and TG. CoQ(10) treatment was well tolerated, and no drug-related adverse reactions were reported. CONCLUSION: Our findings provide substantial evidence that daily CoQ(10) supplementation has beneficial effects on glucose control and lipid management in overweight and obese patients with T2DM.