School of Anesthesiology, Weifang Medical University, Weifang, China.
Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore.
J Alzheimers Dis. 2023;94(2):441-456. doi: 10.3233/JAD-230406.
The current lack of effective drug therapies for Alzheimer's disease (AD) has prompted researchers to seek alternative nutritional therapies, such as medium chain triglycerides (MCTs). However, results are inconclusive.
This systematic review and meta-analysis aims to summarize current evidence on the effect of MCT on cognitive function in patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) or AD.
A systematic search was conducted up until December 16, 2022, to identify human interventions reporting the effects of MCT on cognitive functioning of MCI or AD patients. 995 non-duplicated publications were identified, of which nine (n = 10 studies) met the inclusion criteria.
Meta-analysis showed cognitive improvements in general (SMD = 0.64; 95% CI [0.05, 1.24]), but not in memory, language, and attention domains after oral MCT administration, compared to placebo. The effect of MCT was greater among APOEɛ4 (-) subjects than APOEɛ4 (+) subjects (SMD = 1.87; 95% CI [0.35, 3.40]).
This review provides some evidence that treatment with MCT could improve general cognitive function in APOEɛ4 (-) cognitive impaired patients. Better characterized clinical studies are warranted before making a definitive conclusion on the use of MCT for MCI and AD management.
目前针对阿尔茨海默病（AD）缺乏有效的药物治疗方法，促使研究人员寻求替代的营养治疗方法，如中链甘油三酯（MCT）。然而，结果尚无定论。
本系统评价和荟萃分析旨在总结目前关于 MCT 对轻度认知障碍（MCI）或 AD 患者认知功能影响的证据。
截至 2022 年 12 月 16 日，系统检索了报告 MCT 对 MCI 或 AD 患者认知功能影响的人体干预研究，共识别出 995 篇非重复文献，其中 9 项（n=10 项研究）符合纳入标准。
荟萃分析显示，与安慰剂相比，口服 MCT 后，总体认知功能有所改善（SMD=0.64；95%CI[0.05，1.24]），但记忆、语言和注意力领域无改善。在 APOEɛ4（-）受试者中，MCT 的作用大于 APOEɛ4（+）受试者（SMD=1.87；95%CI[0.35，3.40]）。
本综述提供了一些证据表明，MCT 治疗可能改善 APOEɛ4（-）认知障碍患者的总体认知功能。需要更好地描述临床研究，然后才能对 MCT 用于 MCI 和 AD 管理做出明确结论。
