Effects of melatonin supplementation on markers of inflammation and oxidative stress in patients with diabetes: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.
Level 1 - systematic review of randomized trials
Systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.
PubMed 39053698 · doi:10.1016/j.clnesp.2024.07.015
What was done
Systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials searched through October 2023 across PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Cochrane Central, CNKI, and Scopus. The authors evaluated the effects of melatonin supplementation compared to placebo on markers of inflammation and oxidative stress in patients with diabetes, analyzing data via random-effects models reporting standardized mean differences (SMD) with 95% confidence intervals.
What was found
Fourteen RCTs with 823 participants were analyzed. Melatonin supplementation significantly decreased C-reactive protein (SMD = -0.75; 95% CI: -1.37 to -0.12; P = 0.018), TNF-alpha (SMD = -0.40; 95% CI: -0.64 to -0.15; P = 0.001), IL-1 (SMD = -0.75; 95% CI: -1.03 to -0.47; P < 0.0001), IL-6 (SMD = -0.79; 95% CI: -1.07 to -0.51; P < 0.0001), and malondialdehyde (SMD = -0.61; 95% CI: -0.80 to -0.43; P < 0.0001). It significantly increased total antioxidant capacity (SMD = 0.81; 95% CI: 0.12 to 1.51; P = 0.021), glutathione (SMD = 0.66; 95% CI: 0.28 to 1.03; P = 0.001), and superoxide dismutase (SMD = 1.69; 95% CI: 0.80 to 2.58; P < 0.0001).
Why it matters
This review aggregates randomized evidence indicating that melatonin supplementation consistently improves circulating inflammatory and antioxidant biomarker profiles in diabetic patients.
Limits
Total sample size across 14 trials is small (823 participants, ~59 per study). The abstract does not provide data on melatonin dosage, treatment duration, diabetes type, baseline glycemic status, statistical heterogeneity, or clinical endpoints.
Cited by
- supports A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials found that melatonin use is associated with a reduction in TNF-alpha and IL-6 levels.