To do one and to get more: Part II. Diabetes and metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver diseases

• Published in: Journal of the Chinese Medical Association 2022-12, Vol.85 (12), p.1109-1119
• Main Authors: Lee, Wen-Ling, Wang, Peng-Hui, Yang, Szu-Ting, Liu, Chia-Hao, Chang, Wen-Hsun, Lee, Fa-Kung
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 - complications; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 - drug therapy; Humans; Hypoglycemic Agents - therapeutic use; Insulin - therapeutic use; Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease - complications; Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease - drug therapy; Sodium-Glucose Transporter 2 Inhibitors - therapeutic use
• ISSN: 1726-4901; 1728-7731
• DOI: 10.1097/JCMA.0000000000000831

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) is characterized by inability of faulty pancreatic β-cells to secret a normal amount of insulin to maintain normal body consumption, and/or peripheral tissue has a decreased susceptibility to insulin, resulting in hyperglycemia and insulin resistance. Similar to other chronic systemic inflammatory diseases, DM is a result from dysregulated interactions between ethnic, genetic, epigenetic, immunoregulatory, hormonal, and environmental factors. Therefore, it is rational to suppose the concept as “To do one and to get more”, while using antidiabetic agents (ADA), a main pharmacologic agent for the treatment of DM, can provide an extraglycemia effect on comorbidities or concomittent comorbidities to DM. In this review, based on the much strong correlation between DM and metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver diseases (MAFLD) shown by similar pathophysiological mechanisms and a high prevalence of DM in MAFLD and its vice versa (a high prevalence of MAFLD in DM), it is possible to use the strategy to target both diseases simultaneously. We focus on a new classification of ADA, such as glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor (GLP1R) agonist and sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 (SGLT-2) inhibitors to show the potential benefits of extraglycemic effect on MAFLD. We conclude that the management of DM patients, especially for those who need ADA as adjuvant therapy should include healthy lifestyle modification to overcome the metabolic syndrome, contributing to the urgent need of an effective weight-reduction strategy. GLP1R agonist is one of effective body weight-lowering medications, which may be a better choice for DM complicated with MAFLD or its-associated severe form as metabolic associated steatohepatitis (MASH), although the role of SGLT-2 inhibitors is also impressive. The prescription of these two classes of ADA may satisfy the concept “To do one and to get more”, based on successful sugar-lowering effect for controlling DM and extraglycemia benefits of hepatoprotective activity in DM patients.