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Coenzyme Q10 as Adjunctive Therapy for Cardiovascular Disease and Hypertension: A Systematic Review

Carolyn B Sue-Ling, Willie M Abel, Keith Sue-Ling
The Journal of Nutrition 2022 152(7):1666-1674

Bibliography

PubMed
PMID 35348726
DOI
10.1093/jn/nxac079
Funding
The authors reported no funding received for this study.
Competing interests
The authors reported no conflicts of interest.

Study snapshot

DesignSystematic review of randomized controlled and crossover studies
ModelHuman cardiovascular disease and hypertension studies, predominantly older adults
Sample14 studies; 1,067 participants.
InterventionCoQ10 supplementation added to conventional therapy in heart failure, hypertension, ischemic heart disease and preoperative cardiac-surgery populations.
DurationVaried across included trials from the 2000–2020 evidence base.
EndpointsFunctional capacity; Major adverse cardiovascular events; Serum CoQ10; Blood pressure; Inflammatory markers; Myocardial hemodynamics; Safety

What the study showed, in plain terms

This systematic review evaluated 14 human studies involving 1,067 participants with cardiovascular disease or hypertension. The clearest positive signals came from heart-failure studies, while hypertension results were inconclusive. Some ischemic-heart-disease studies reported favorable inflammatory-marker changes and one cardiac-surgery study reported improved myocardial hemodynamics. The authors considered CoQ10 generally safe as an adjunct but emphasized that the trials were mixed and often underpowered for major clinical outcomes.

Key findings

Six heart-failure studies, four hypertension studies, three ischemic-heart-disease studies and one cardiac-surgery study were included. Heart-failure trials showed favorable signals for functional capacity, serum CoQ10 and major adverse cardiovascular events. Ischemic-heart-disease trials reported positive effects on selected inflammatory markers, and preoperative supplementation improved myocardial hemodynamic measures in one study. Hypertension findings were inconclusive.

What this study can and cannot tell us

The review combined different cardiovascular diseases, doses, formulations, durations and outcomes, limiting direct comparability. Many underlying trials were small or underpowered for major clinical endpoints, and the included population was predominantly older adult males. The authors therefore advised caution and called for further studies before widespread use.

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Dr. Khaled Mahmoud, MBBChCritical Care Medicine, Longevity Science & Editorial Direction Dr. Amr Yasser, PhDCardiometabolic, Musculoskeletal, Gut & Bioavailability Dr. Abdulla Mostafa, PhDCellular Senescence, Neurological, Mitochondrial & Brain-Ageing Biology