Favorable effect of sodium–glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitor, dapagliflozin, on non‐alcoholic fatty liver disease compared with pioglitazone

AIMS/INTRODUCTION: Sodium–glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitors, as well as thiazolidines, suppress nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD); however, few comparative studies have been reported. Dapagliflozin has shown non‐inferiority compared with pioglitazone for glycemic control, and superiority regarding weight reduction in patients with type 2 diabetes. We carried out a secondary analysis for the favorable effects of sodium–glucose cotransporter inhibitors for NAFLD. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this multicenter, open‐label, prospective, randomized, parallel‐group comparison trial, patients taking pioglitazone for ≥12 weeks were randomly switched to dapagliflozin or continued pioglitazone for a further 24 weeks. The fatty liver index (FLI), consisting of body mass index, triglycerides, waist circumference and γ‐glutamyl transpeptidase, was used for the evaluation of NAFLD. RESULTS: A total of 53 participants with NAFLD (27 dapagliflozin; 26 pioglitazone) were included in this analysis. FLI decreased significantly in the dapagliflozin group (48.7 ± 23.4 to 42.1 ± 23.9) compared with the pioglitazone group (49.0 ± 26.1 to 51.1 ± 25.8; P < 0.01). Multiple linear regression analysis showed that the changes in FLI had a significantly positive correlation with changes in glycated hemoglobin (P = 0.03) and insulin level (P < 0.01) in the dapagliflozin group. CONCLUSION: Dapagliflozin might be more beneficial than pioglitazone in patients with NAFLD. Improvements in FLI would be closely related to glycemic control.