Type 2 diabetes drug Jardiance might protect against heart attacks

The once-daily type 2 diabetes drug Jardiance reduced the risk of heart attack, stroke and death in a long-term clinical trial.
Jardiance is the market name for empagliflozi, an SGLT2 inhibitor developed by Eli Lilly and Co and Boehringer Ingelheim. These results have been hailed as a “first for diabetes”, with a glucose-lowering drug shown to have positive cardiovascular outcomes.
More than 7,000 individuals with type 2 diabetes from 42 countries were either given Jardiance in 10mg and 25mg doses, or placebo. All patients were considered at high risk of heart attacks and diabetes.
The drugs given to patients were in addition to standard treatments, such as glucose-lowering agents, statins and blood pressure drugs. The participants were then followed for an average of 3.1 years.
Significantly fewer non-fatal heart attacks, non-fatal strokes and cardiac deaths were observed among patients given Jardiance alongside standard treatments. The safety of Jardiance was consistent with results of previous studies.
SGLT2 inhibitors are designed to reduce blood glucose, but Jardiance is the first of the drug class to demonstrate a reduction in cardiovascular risk.
Sanford Bernstein analyst Tim Anderson said: “This is a positive, and a first for the field of diabetes. [This] could give the drug – and the broader SGLT2 class in which it competes – a competitive leg up.”
Eli Lilly and Boehringer plan to announce the full findings of the trial on September 17 at the European Association for the Study of Diabetes in Stockholm meeting.