Dapagliflozin shown to reduce risk of kidney disease

[DCUK NewsBot]

A drug used to control type 2 diabetes can help reduce the progression of kidney disease or related death, researchers have said. Dapagliflozin, an oral sodium glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitor medication, reduced the risk of kidney function decline, end-stage renal disease and renal death in people with type 2 diabetes by 47 per cent. The findings were part of the Dapagliflozin Effect on Cardiovascular Events Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction (DECLARE-TIMI 58) trial, which is the first trial to look at heart health outcomes among people with diabetes who are deemed at risk of developing Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease (ASCVD). The trial also showed that dapagliflozin reduced and prevented a worsening of Urine Albumin-to-Creatinine Ratio (UACR), a measure of kidney health. The improvements were seen across participants with different levels of UACR at the start of the study. The research involved studying more than 17,000 people with type 2 diabetes. Last year, findings from the study showed the drug had positive results for preventing heart failure, cutting hospital admissions for the condition or cardiovascular death by 17 per cent. Lead researcher Itamar Raz, professor of internal medicine at Hadassah Medical School at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and head of the Israel National Council of Diabetes, said: "Medications like dapagliflozin should also be considered as first line therapy in patients without established cardiovascular disease. The drugs have a high safety margin and should be used regularly by primary care physicians." Within the UK, dapagliflozin, sold under the brand name Forxiga, may be prescribed if someone with type 2 diabetes requires medication and does not tolerate metformin, or if they do not achieve adequate blood glucose control on other medication therapies. SGLT2 inhibitors were approved to treat type 2 diabetes in 2013. The drug works by helping the kidneys to pass excess glucose out of the blood and excrete the glucose from the body via the urine. The findings were presented at the American Diabetes Association’s 79th Scientific Sessions congress and the study is published in the Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology.

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[Guzzler]

"First line therapy for people without established cardiovascular disease". Shades of stain treatment much? Based on what, relative risk or absolute risk? Big difference between Metformin and a SGLT2i wrt risk v benefit, I'm thinking.

 

[Member496333]

Logically this makes sense since these drugs actually remove glucose from the body rather than move it out of the blood into tissues and organs, as can be the case with other medicines and exogenous insulin. Therefore the reduction in all-body glucotoxicity could reasonably be expected to reduce incidences of any number of problems commonly associated with diabetes. Typically, most of the other “heavy duty” treatments have not been shown to improve long term all-cause mortality, so I’m unsurprised that these findings are being advertised.

I agree with @Guzzler in the main, though. Feels like the next step will be knee-jerk reactions by GPs prescribing them like smarties to anyone with an intolerance to Metformin. After all, they improve kidney health don’t ya know.

 

[ickihun]

It's good to know the kidneys are safe on dapagliflozin. My sensitive area has really been pushed to the limit with all the heavy thrush.
I'm delighted I no longer won't have to use this drug again.

To whom it may concern.
Get rid of side affect and I'll try it again!