Cardiac event risk stratification in patients with end-stage renal disease: Sub-analysis of the B-SAFE study

Association of Glucagon-Like Peptide-1 Receptor Agonist vs Dipeptidyl Peptidase-4 Inhibitor Use With Mortality Among Patients With Type 2 Diabetes and Advanced Chronic Kidney Disease

IMPORTANCE

Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist use is associated with reduced mortality and improved cardiovascular outcomes in the general population with diabetes. Dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitors are commonly used antidiabetic agents for patients with advanced-stage chronic kidney disease (CKD). The association of these 2 drug classes with outcomes among patients with diabetes and advanced-stage CKD or end-stage kidney disease (ESKD) is not well understood.

OBJECTIVE

To assess whether use of GLP-1 receptor agonists in a population with diabetes and advanced-stage CKD or ESKD is associated with better outcomes compared with use of DPP-4 inhibitors.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS

This retrospective cohort study used data on patients with type 2 diabetes and stage 5 CKD or ESKD obtained from the National Health Insurance Research Database of Taiwan. The study was conducted between January 1, 2012, and December 31, 2018. Data were analyzed from June 2020 to July 2021.

EXPOSURES

Treatment with GLP-1 receptor agonists compared with treatment with DPP-4 inhibitors.

MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES

All-cause mortality, sepsis- and infection-related mortality, and mortality related to major adverse cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events were compared between patients treated with GLP-1 receptor agonists and patients treated with DPP-4 inhibitors. Propensity score weighting was used to mitigate the imbalance among covariates between the groups.

RESULTS

Of 27 279 patients included in the study, 26 578 were in the DPP-4 inhibitor group (14 443 [54.34%] male; mean [SD] age, 65 [13] years) and 701 in the GLP-1 receptor agonist group (346 [49.36%] male; mean [SD] age, 59 [13] years). After weighting, the use of GLP-1 receptor agonists was associated with lower all-cause mortality (hazard ratio [HR], 0.79; 95% CI, 0.63-0.98) and lower sepsis- and infection-related mortality (HR, 0.61; 95% CI, 0.40-0.91). Subgroup analysis demonstrated a lower risk of mortality associated with use of GLP-1 receptor agonists compared with DDP-4 inhibitors among patients with cerebrovascular disease (HR, 0.33; 95% CI, 0.12-0.86) than among those without cerebrovascular disease (HR, 0.89; 95% CI, 0.71-1.12) (P = .04 for interaction).

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE

Treatment with GLP-1 receptor agonists was associated with lower all-cause mortality among patients with type 2 diabetes, advanced-stage CKD, and ESKD than was treatment with DPP-4 inhibitors. Additional well-designed, prospective studies are needed to confirm the potential benefit of GLP-1 receptor agonist treatment for patients with advanced CKD or ESKD.

C-reactive Protein, Free Fatty Acid, and Uric Acid as Predictors of Adverse Events after Endovascular Revascularization of Arterial Femoropopliteal Occlusion Lesions

OBJECTIVES

This study aimed to investigate the relationship between pre-procedure high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP), free fatty acid (FFA), and uric acid (UA) levels and post-procedure mortality and morbidity of endovascular revascularization of arterial femoropopliteal occlusion lesions.

METHODS

This was a retrospective review of clinical data retrieved from a prospectively held database in Peking Union Medical College Hospital. A total of 71 Patients who underwent endovascular treatment (EVT) for femoropopliteal occlusive disease between January 1, 2014 and November 1, 2017, were included in this study. Endpoints were defined as major adverse limb events (MALE; target vessel revascularization, amputation, or disease progression) and major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE; stroke, myocardial infarction, or all-cause death) during the entire follow-up period. Univariate and multivariate Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to evaluate the relationship of elevated biomarker levels (hsCRP, FFA and UA, measured by immunoturbidimetry assay, enzymatic assay and enzymatic assay, respectively) to MALE and MACE outcomes.

RESULTS

Seventy-one patients (72 limbs) with sufficient follow-up information were included in the analysis. The mean age was 69.7 ± 8.6 years; 21.1% were female. The Rutherford class of target limbs were ≥ 3. The median follow-up was 36 (range 18-59 months). Univariate analyses revealed that patients with elevated hsCRP levels had an increased risk of MALE (hazard ratio [HR], 2.682; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.281-5.617, P = 0.009). High FFA levels were associated with an increased risk of MALE (HR, 2.658; 95% CI, 1.075-6.573; P = 0.034). Multivariate analyses demonstrated that elevated hsCRP values (HR, 4.015; 95% CI, 1.628-10.551; P = 0.003) and FFA value (HR, 3.034; 95% CI, 1.102-8.354; P = 0.032) were both significantly associated with increased MALE. Elevated UA levels predicted MACE in the presence of confounders (HR, 11.446; 95% CI, 1.367-95.801 P = 0.023).

CONCLUSION

Pre-procedure hsCRP and FFA levels could serve as predictors of adverse events after EVT in patients with arterial femoropopliteal occlusive disease. The role of UA in MACE may warrant further investigation, because the correlation is not as powerful as the other two in the study.

Pioglitazone Is Associated with Lower Major Adverse Cardiovascular and Cerebrovascular Events than DPP4-Inhibitors in Diabetic Patients with End-Stage Renal Disease: A Taiwan Nationwide Cohort Study, 2006-2016

While pioglitazone reduces insulin resistance and hepatic gluconeogenesis effectively in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), these benefits remained controversial in patients with end stage renal disease (ESRD). We compared major adverse cardiac cerebrovascular events (MACCEs) and mortality (overall, infection-related, and MACCE-related) of pioglitazone to that of dipeptidyl peptidase 4 inhibitors (DPP4-inhibitors) in patients with T2DM and ESRD. From Taiwan’s national health insurance research database (NHIRD), 647 pioglitazone users and 6080 DPP4-inhibitors users between 1 April 2006 and 31 December 2016 were followed from the 91th date after the ESRD certification until the study outcomes, independently; withdraw from the NHI program, death, or 31 December 2017, whichever came first. After weighting, risks of MACCEs (10.48% vs. 12.62% per person-years, hazard ratio (HR): 0.85, 95% (CI): 0.729–0.985) and all-cause mortality (12.86% vs. 13.22% per person-years, (HR): 0.88, 95% (CI): 0.771–0.995) are significantly lower in pioglitazone group. Subgroup analysis found lower MACCEs risk in the pioglitazone users without insulin therapy (6.44% vs. 10.04% (HR): 0.59, 95% (CI): 0.42–0.82) and lower MACCEs related death (2.76% vs. 3.84% (HR): 0.61, 95% (CI): 0.40–0.95) in the pioglitazone group with dyslipidemia, when comparing with DPP4-inhibitors users. Pioglitazone is associated with lower all-cause mortality and MACCEs in diabetic patients with ESRD, compared to DPP4-inhibitors. These benefits were even more significant in the non-insulin users and patients with dyslipidemia.

Cardiac Imaging in Chronic Kidney Disease Patients

Cardiovascular disease is highly prevalent and it is associated with high morbidity and mortality rates in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). The implementation of various imaging modalities may help to risk stratify these patients with a potential ease on the burden of complications and the rising costs of care. In this article we review some of the modern imaging techniques to diagnose cardiac disease in patients affected by CKD.