Vitamin E May Help Treat Liver Condition

Vitamin E pills may help many people who have the most common long-term liver disease, new research suggests. The illness is nonalcoholic steatohepatitis. It is also called nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. It can lead to a life-threatening liver condition, cirrhosis. The study included 247 adults with the condition. They were randomly assigned into four groups. One group received vitamin E pills. Another group got pioglitazone (Actos), a diabetes medicine. The other two groups received placebo pills that looked like one of these drugs. About 4 out of 10 people who took vitamin E improved, compared with 2 out of 10 who took the placebo. Fewer people who took pioglitazone improved. The difference compared with the placebo could have been caused by chance. The New England Journal of Medicine published the study online. The Associated Press about it April 29.