Utilization Rates of SGLT2 Inhibitors and GLP-1 Receptor Agonists and Their Facility-Level Variation Among Patients With Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease and Type 2 Diabetes: Insights From the Department of Veterans Affairs

Objective: There is mounting evidence regarding the cardiovascular (CV) benefits of sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitors (SGLT2-Is) and glucagon like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RAs) among patients with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) and type 2 diabetes (T2DM). There is paucity of data assessing real-world practice patterns for these drug classes. We aimed to assess utilization rates of these drug classes and facility-level variation in their utilization. Research Design and Methods: We used the nationwide Veterans Affairs (VA) healthcare system dataset from January 1, 2020 to December 31, 2020 and included patients with established ASCVD and T2DM. Among these patients, we assessed the use of SGLT2i and GLP-1RA and the facility-level variation in their utilization. Facility-level variation was computed using median rate ratios (MRR), a measure of likelihood that two random facilities differ in use of SGLT2i and GLP-1RA in patients with ASCVD and T2DM. Results: Among 537,980 patients with ASCVD and T2DM across 130 VA facilities, 11.2% of patients received SGLT2i while 8.0% of patients received GLP-1RA. Patients receiving these cardioprotective glucose-lowering drug classes were on average younger and had a higher proportion of non-Hispanic Whites. Overall, median (10th-90th percentile) facility-level rates were 14.92% (9.31%-22.50%) for SGLT2i and 10.88% (4.44%-17.07%) for GLP-1RA. There was significant facility level variation among SGLT2-Is utilization - MRRunadjusted (95% CI):1.41 (1.35-1.47) and MRRadjusted (95% CI): 1.55 (1.46 – 1.63). Similar facility level variation was observed for utilization of GLP-1 RA – MRRunadjusted (95% CI):1.34 (1.29-1.38) and MRRadjusted (95% CI): 1.78 (1.65 – 1.90). Conclusions: Overall utilization rates of SGLT2i and GLP-1RA among eligible patients are low with significantly higher residual facility-level variation in utilization of these drug classes. Our results suggest opportunities to optimize their use to prevent future adverse cardiovascular events among these patients.

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Utilization Rates of SGLT2 Inhibitors and GLP-1 Receptor Agonists and Their Facility-Level Variation Among Patients With Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease and Type 2 Diabetes: Insights From the Department of Veterans Affairs

Diabetes Care ◽

10.2337/dc21-1815 ◽

2022 ◽

Author(s):

Dhruv Mahtta ◽

David J. Ramsey ◽

Michelle T. Lee ◽

Liang Chen ◽

Mahmoud Al Rifai ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Type 2 Diabetes ◽

Cardiovascular Disease ◽

Veterans Affairs ◽

Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease ◽

Level Variation ◽

Data Set ◽

Receptor Agonists ◽

Drug Classes ◽

Facility Level

OBJECTIVE There is mounting evidence regarding the cardiovascular benefits of sodium–glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitors (SGLT2-Is) and glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs) among patients with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). There is paucity of data assessing real-world practice patterns for these drug classes. We aimed to assess utilization rates of these drug classes and facility-level variation in their use. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS We used the nationwide Veterans Affairs (VA) health care system data set from 1 January 2020 to 31 December 2020 and included patients with established ASCVD and T2DM. Among these patients, we assessed the use of SGLT2-I and GLP-1 RA and the facility-level variation in their use. Facility-level variation was computed using median rate ratios (MRR), a measure of likelihood that two random facilities differ in use of SGLT2i and GLP-1 RA in patients with ASCVD and T2DM. RESULTS Among 537,980 patients with ASCVD and T2DM across 130 VA facilities, 11.2% of patients received an SGLT2i while 8.0% of patients received a GLP-1 RA. Patients receiving these cardioprotective glucose-lowering drug classes were on average younger and had a higher proportion of non-Hispanic Whites. Overall, median (10th–90th percentile) facility-level rates were 14.92% (9.31–22.50) for SGLT2i and 10.88% (4.44–17.07) for GLP-1 RA. There was significant facility-level variation among SGLT2-Is use—MRRunadjusted: 1.41 (95% CI 1.35–1.47) and MRRadjusted: 1.55 (95% CI 1.46 –1.63). Similar facility-level variation was observed for use of GLP-1 RA—MRRunadjusted: 1.34 (95% CI 1.29–1.38) and MRRadjusted: 1.78 (95% CI1.65–1.90). CONCLUSIONS Overall utilization rates of SGLT2i and GLP-1 RA among eligible patients are low, with significantly higher residual facility-level variation in the use of these drug classes. Our results suggest opportunities to optimize their use to prevent future adverse cardiovascular events among these patients.

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GIP as a Potential Therapeutic Target for Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease–A Systematic Review

International Journal of Molecular Sciences ◽

10.3390/ijms21041509 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 21 (4) ◽

pp. 1509 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Yusaku Mori ◽

Takanori Matsui ◽

Tsutomu Hirano ◽

Sho-ichi Yamagishi

Keyword(s):

Type 2 Diabetes ◽

Cardiovascular Disease ◽

Clinical Trials ◽

Animal Models ◽

Hypoglycemic Agents ◽

Diabetic Patients ◽

Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease ◽

Dependent Manner ◽

Receptor Agonists

Glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP) and glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) are gut hormones that are secreted from enteroendocrine L cells and K cells in response to digested nutrients, respectively. They are also referred to incretin for their ability to stimulate insulin secretion from pancreatic beta cells in a glucose-dependent manner. Furthermore, GLP-1 exerts anorexic effects via its actions in the central nervous system. Since native incretin is rapidly inactivated by dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4), DPP-resistant GLP-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RAs), and DPP-4 inhibitors are currently used for the treatment of type 2 diabetes as incretin-based therapy. These new-class agents have superiority to classical oral hypoglycemic agents such as sulfonylureas because of their low risks for hypoglycemia and body weight gain. In addition, a number of preclinical studies have shown the cardioprotective properties of incretin-based therapy, whose findings are further supported by several randomized clinical trials. Indeed, GLP-1RA has been significantly shown to reduce the risk of cardiovascular and renal events in patients with type 2 diabetes. However, the role of GIP in cardiovascular disease remains to be elucidated. Recently, pharmacological doses of GIP receptor agonists (GIPRAs) have been found to exert anti-obesity effects in animal models. These observations suggest that combination therapy of GLP-1R and GIPR may induce superior metabolic and anti-diabetic effects compared with each agonist individually. Clinical trials with GLP-1R/GIPR dual agonists are ongoing in diabetic patients. Therefore, in this review, we summarize the cardiovascular effects of GIP and GIPRAs in cell culture systems, animal models, and humans.

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