Efficacy and Safety of Berberine for Prediabetes: A Systematic Evaluation and Meta-Analysis

Abstract

Objective: To assess the efficacy and safety of berberine in the treatment of prediabetes. Methods: We searched the following databases, CNKI, WanFang, VIP, CBM, PubMed, Cochrane Library, Embase, and Medline (OVID) from the databases established to December 2020 in Chinese or English language. Randomized control trials (RCTs) of berberine compared with lifestyle modification, placebo, and/or hypoglycaemics intervention on treating prediabetes were included. Data extraction and paper quality assessment were conducted according to the Cochrane Handbook. RevMan 5.4 was used for the meta-analysis. Results: Seven studies involving 859 participants were included in the study and the control groups were all lifestyle modification or metformin treatment. The clinical heterogeneity of the trials was relatively high, and the methodological quality of most trials was generally low. Meta-analysis suggested that berberine could reduce FPG ( P = 0.001), 2hPG ( P = 0.001) and HbA1c ( P = 0.002) levels significantly as compared with lifestyle group. There was no statistical significance between berberine and metformin. No serious adverse effects from berberine were reported. Conclusions: Berberine has good efficacy and safety in the treatment of prediabetes. Due to the quality limitations of the included trials, the above conclusions need to be further verified by high-quality, large sample size and multi-center clinical trials.