How Broad Are the Benefits of SGLT-2 Inhibitors?

Compared with other agents, SGLT-2 inhibitors were associated with improved outcomes in real-world patients from 6 countries.

Clinical trials have shown that sodium-glucose cotransporter (SGLT-2) inhibitors significantly reduce adverse cardiovascular events, including death, in patients with type 2 diabetes (NEJM JW Cardiology Jan 2018 and Circulation 2018; 137:323). However, these trials have largely been limited to relatively high-risk populations in the U.S. and Europe. Using administrative data, the industry-funded CVD-REAL 2 investigators explored associations between SGLT-2 inhibitor initiation and cardiovascular outcomes in more than 400,000 patients in South Korea, Japan, Singapore, Israel, Australia, and Canada (NCT02993614).

A minority of participants had established cardiovascular disease (about 27%), and 45% were women. After propensity-score matching, …

Reviewing Author

Fatima Rodriguez, MD, MPH

Disclosures

Consultant/Advisory BoardNovoNordisk; HealthPals; Novartis; Amgen

EquityHealthPals; Carta

Grant/Research SupportNational Institutes of Health/National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute; American Heart Association–Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

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