Effect of Saroglitazar on Glycemic Status: A Meta-analysis

This systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted to assess the glycemic effect of saroglitazar in patients with type 2 diabetes or prediabetes and dyslipidemia.

PubMed and Google Scholar databases were searched for randomized controlled trials and observational studies till December 2023. The primary outcomes were changes in glycemic parameters such as glycated hemoglobin (HbA_1c), fasting blood sugar (FBS), and post-prandial blood sugar (PPBS) levels, and the secondary outcomes included changes in lipid profile. The adverse drug reactions were noted and recorded. ROB2 was used for assessing the risk of bias.  Results: A total of 147 studies were screened, and 12 studies were included in the review. There was a significant reduction in FBS (-30.16 (95% CI: -40.36, -19.95) p<0.001, I²=98%), PPBS (-69.09 (95% CI: -85.72, -52.46) p<0.001, I²=96%), and HbA_1c (-0.93 (95% CI: -1.18, -0.67) p<0.001, I²=99%) levels following saroglitazar treatment. There was also a significant reduction in total cholesterol of -26.15 (95% CI: -42.44, -9.86) p=0.002, I²=98% and -58.25 (95% CI: -72.21, -44.30) p<0.001, I²=94% in the randomized controlled trials and observational studies, respectively. The study found a significant reduction in low-density lipoprotein and very-low-density lipoprotein levels, along with an improvement in high-density lipoprotein levels, in the saroglitazar group.

Our meta-analysis has found that saroglitazar causes a significant reduction in the HbA_1c, FBS, and PPBS levels in patients treated for diabetic dyslipidemia.