US Pharm. 2015;40(12):6.
New Haven, CT—Research shows that a type 2 diabetes drug significantly reduces hospitalizations and death from heart failure. In the EMPA-REG OUTCOME trial, patients with type 2 diabetes and risk factors for heart disease were randomized to receive once-daily doses of either the sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitor empagliflozin or a placebo. At the end of the trial period, investigators found that patients treated with empagliflozin experienced greater reductions in blood glucose, blood pressure, and weight compared to those on placebo. There were also significant reductions in hospitalizations for heart failure (35%) and the combined result for being hospitalized or dying of heart failure (39%). This is the first antidiabetic agent to show such benefits.
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