Combination Therapies for Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease
Evangelia Makri, Eleftheria Makri, Stergios A. Pοlyzos
Abstract
Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is considered a highly prevalent disease associated with various co-morbidities that lead to socioeconomic burden. Despite large-scale investigation, no pharmacological treatment has been approved specifically for NAFLD to date. Lifestyle modifications and diet are regarded as highly beneficial for the management of NAFLD, albeit with poor compliance, thus rendering pharmacological treatment highly important. Based on the current failure to discover a "magic bullet" to treat all patients with NAFLD and considering the multifaceted pathophysiology of the disease, combination therapies may be considered to be a rational alternative approach. In this regard, several drug categories have been considered, including, but not limited to, lipid-lowering, anti-hypertensive, glucose-lowering, anti-obesity, anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-fibrotic medications. The aim of this review is, in addition to summarizing some of the multiple factors contributing to the pathophysiology of NAFLD, to focus on the efficacy of pharmacological combinations on the management of NAFLD. This may provide evidence for a more personalized treatment of patients with NAFLD in the future.