Diabetes Meds & Cardiovascular Risk Reduction: The LEGEND Study

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In the LEGEND-T2DM Study, Rohan Khera MD, MS; his co-principal investigator Marc Suchard, MD, PhD at UCLA; and CarDS lab members Arya Aminorroaya, MD, MPH; Lovedeep Dhingra, MBBS; Phyllis Thangaraj, MD, PhD; and Aline Pedroso Camargos, PhD, identified second-line diabetes medications most effective at reducing cardiovascular risk.

Drawing on data from nearly 1.5 million patients from across the world, the LEGEND-T2DM study compared the effectiveness of older versus newer second-line diabetes medications in a comparative effectiveness study. Rigorous statistical and federated analysis revealed that SGLT-2is and GLP-1RAs outperformed sulfonylureas and DPP4is in reducing the risk of heart attack and stroke for diabetes patients.

“The older generation drugs do seem to be inferior on cardiovascular risk reduction. I think that’s an important key takeaway while we make these decisions in practice, especially among those who have high risk, whether continued use of some of the old drugs is appropriate” said Khera.

This exciting research highlights the need for continuous evaluation of our treatment options to care for patients with complex health conditions.