Abstract
We studied the effect of pioglitazone on obese type 2 diabetic patients with fatty liver. Pioglitazone was associated with reduced HbA1c and improved liver function in such patients and was not associated with any weight increase. BMI was significantly higher in those with improved liver function than in those with worsened or unchanged liver function. A 66-year-old woman diagnosed with type 2 diabetes mellitus and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and treated with pioglitazone showed improved HbA1c and liver function with no weight increase. We found in needle biopsy that the number of fatty cells in the liver decreased over a 6-month period, compared to the number of fatty cells observed prior to treatment. Our results suggest that pioglitazone is an effective oral hypoglycemic agents in treating diabetes mellitus and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.
