Victoza lowers adverse cardiovascular events in type 2 diabetes patients, says study

Novo Nordisk has announced successful results from a trial investigating the cardiovascular safety of Victoza (liraglutide) in people with type 2 diabetes.
Victoza is a human glucagon-like peptide (GLP-1) analogue for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. It is injected once daily and works by lowering blood glucose levels and aiding weight loss.
In a study called the LEADER trial, Victoza was evaluated over a five-year period in more than 9,000 adults with type 2 diabetes. All participants had a high risk of major adverse cardiovascular events.
Patients randomly received 1.2 or 1.8mg of Victoza or placebo, in addition to standard care. The researchers wanted to evaluate if patients were more at risk of experiencing cardiovascular death, non-fatal myocardial infarction or non-fatal stroke while taking placebo or liraglutide.
Victoza demonstrated a superior reduction of major adverse cardiovascular events compared to placebo, and its safety profile was consistent with previous clinical studies on liraglutide.
“People with type 2 diabetes generally have a higher risk of experiencing major adverse cardiovascular events,” explained Mads Krogsgaard Thomse, executive vice president and chief science officer of Novo Nordisk.
“That’s why we are very excited about the results from LEADER, which showed that Victoza, in addition to helping people with type 2 diabetes control their blood sugar levels, also reduces their risk of major adverse cardiovascular events.”
Novo Nordisk plans to reveal more detailed results of the study at the 76th Scientific Sessions of the American Diabetes Association in June 2016.
Another recent study found that Victoza improves insulin secretion among adults with long-standing, uncontrolled type 2 diabetes after six months of treatment.