New analyses of trial data suggest SGLT-2 inhibitors reduce incident diabetes in patients with cardiovascular or kidney disease, a team of international researchers says.

Dapagliflozin was associated with a 33% lower risk of new-onset diabetes in one study, suggesting it was a candidate for upstream prevention among patients with heart failure (HF), the Harvard University-led team reported.

They pooled data for 5600 patients (mean age 59) in two AstraZeneca-funded phase III clinical trials: Dapagliflozin and Prevention of Adverse Outcomes in Heart Failure (DAPA-HF) and Dapagliflozin Evaluation to Improve the Lives of Patients with Preserved Ejection Fraction Heart Failure (DELIVER).

Over 22 months’ follow-up, 2.3% of participants taking 10mg dapagliflozin developed new-onset diabetes — defined as initiation of a glucose-lowering therapy — compared with 3.5% of the placebo arms.