Diabetes Risks of Statin Therapy-Coenzyme Q10 May Help.

Background: Statin therapy is associated with an increased risk of new-onset diabetes (NOD), possibly due to a reduction in coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) levels as a result of statin use. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between exogenous CoQ10 supplementation and the development of NOD.

Methods: This study included 4394 participants from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). Baseline characteristics were compared between those with and without NOD and between those with and without CoQ10. Univariate logistic regression was performed to identify factors associated with NOD. Two models were used for confounding factors, including demographics and various covariates. Multifactor logistic regression further assessed the association between CoQ10 supplementation and NOD. Additionally, restricted cubic spline (RCS) analysis was conducted to evaluate the potential nonlinear relationship between daily CoQ10 dose and NOD.

Results: Univariate logistic regression showed an association between CoQ10 supplementation and a reduced risk of NOD (odds ratio [OR] = 0.323, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.157-0.668, p = 0.003), which remained significant after adjustments in model 1 (OR = 0.344, 95% CI 0.160-0.737, p = 0.006) and model 2 (OR = 0.232, 95% CI 0.057-0.942, p = 0.041). There was no evidence of a linear association between daily CoQ10 dose and NOD in logistic regression analysis (OR = 0.999, 95% CI 0.994-1.004, p = 0.720), and no evidence of a nonlinear correlation in the RCS analysis (p > 0.05).

Conclusions: CoQ10 supplementation in individuals taking statins was associated with a reduced risk of NOD, and this association was independent of the CoQ10 dose.