Dipeptidyl peptidase-IV in chronic heart failure with reduced ejection fraction

Re-evaluation of dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors in patients with heart failure and diabetes mellitus

OBJECTIVES

The question of whether dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors (DPP-4i) should be preferred as new glucose-lowering agents in heart failure is controversial. This studyaimed to evaluate the effects of DPP-4i treatment on all-cause mortality and cardiovascular outcomes in patients with heart failure.

METHODS

We searched for available studies of DPP-4i therapy in heart failure and performed a pooled analysis. Outcomes included all-cause mortality, cardiovascular death, hospitalization for heart failure, left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), left ventricular end-diastolic volume (LVEDV), acute coronary syndrome, and acute myocardial infarction.

RESULTS

Treatment with DPP-4i did not reduce the risk of all-cause death, cardiovascular death, or hospitalization for heart failure. Subgroup analyses showed that DPP-4i significantly reduced all-cause mortality in trials with >40% female patients (OR 0.30, 95% CI [0.16, 0.58], P=0.0003) and in trials with >20% patients with heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) (OR 0.34, 95% CI [0.19, 0.60], P=0.0003). Changes in LVEF and LVEDV showed no statistical differences between the 2 groups. Accordingly, DPP-4i did not alter the risk of acute coronary syndrome and acute myocardial infarction.

CONCLUSIONS

DPP-4i may reduce all-cause mortality in heart failure patients in subgroups of women and HFpEF and has a high coronary safety profile.

DPP-4 inhibitors and GLP-1RAs: cardiovascular safety and benefits

Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists and dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors are commonly used treatments for patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Both anti-diabetic treatments function by playing key modulatory roles in the incretin system. Though these drugs have been deemed effective in treating T2DM, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and some members of the scientific community have questioned the safety of these therapeutics relative to important cardiovascular endpoints. As a result, since 2008, the FDA has required all new drugs for glycemic control in T2DM patients to demonstrate cardiovascular safety. The present review article strives to assess the safety and benefits of incretin-based therapy, a new class of antidiabetic drug, on the health of patient cardiovascular systems. In the process, this review will also provide a physiological overview of the incretin system and how key components function in T2DM.

Dipeptidyl Peptidase IV as a Muscle Myokine

Dipeptidyl peptidase IV (DPP-IV) is a unique serine protease that exists in a membrane bound state and in a soluble state in most tissues in the body. DPP-IV has multiple targets including cytokines, neuropeptides, and incretin hormones, and plays an important role in health and disease. Recent work suggests that skeletal muscle releases DPP-IV as a myokine and participates in control of muscle blood flow. However, few of the functions of DPP-IV as a myokine have been investigated to date and there is a poor understanding about what causes DPP-IV to be released from muscle.

Targeting the DPP-4-GLP-1 pathway improves exercise tolerance in heart failure patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

The most significant manifestation of heart failure is exercise intolerance. This systematic review and meta-analysis was performed to investigate whether dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitors or glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs), widely used anti-diabetic drugs, could improve exercise tolerance in heart failure patients with or without type 2 diabetes mellitus.

METHODS

An electronic search of PubMed, EMBASE and the Cochrane Library was carried out through March 8th, 2019, for eligible trials. Only randomized controlled studies were included. The primary outcome was exercise tolerance [6-min walk test (6MWT) and peak O2 consumption], and the secondary outcomes included quality of life (QoL), adverse events (AEs) and all-cause death.

RESULT

After the literature was screened by two reviewers independently, four trials (659 patients) conducted with heart failure patients with or without type 2 diabetes met the eligibility criteria. The results suggested that targeting the DPP-4-GLP-1 pathway can improve exercise tolerance in heart failure patients [MD 24.88 (95% CI 5.45, 44.31), P = 0.01] without decreasing QoL [SMD -0.51 (95% CI -1.13, 0.10), P = 0.10]; additionally, targeting the DPP-4-GLP-1 pathway did not show signs of increasing the incidence of serious AEs or mortality.

CONCLUSION

Our results suggest that DPP-4 inhibitors or GLP-1 RAs improve exercise tolerance in heart failure patients. Although the use of these drugs for heart failure has not been approved by any organization, they may be a better choice for type 2 diabetes mellitus patients with heart failure. Furthermore, as this pathway contributes to the improvement of exercise tolerance, it may be worth further investigation in exercise-intolerant patients with other diseases.

Diabetic patients need higher furosemide doses: a report on acute and chronic heart failure patients

INTRODUCTION

Diuretics are first-line drugs in symptomatic heart failure treatment. Diabetes mellitus has been suggested as a determinant of diuretic resistance. Studies comparing the dose and efficacy of diuretics in patients with and without diabetes are lacking. We aimed to study if furosemide dose differed according to diabetes status.

METHODS

We studied two cohorts of heart failure patients: a cohort of acute heart failure patients consecutively hospitalized with the primary diagnosis of heart failure and another of stable and optimized patients followed in a heart failure clinic. Data on comorbidities and medication were abstracted from patients' files. Use and doses of furosemide were compared between diabetic and nondiabetic patients. Regression analysis was used to determine the association of variables with diuretic dose. The independent association of diabetes with furosemide dose was assessed using multivariate models.

RESULTS

We studied 865 heart failure patients: 601 acute heart failure patients and 264 chronic stable heart failure patients. Acute heart failure patients with diabetes were more likely to need intravenous diuretic therapy and they were also more often discharged under higher doses of furosemide. They needed extra 6-mg furosemide at discharge in comparison with their nondiabetics counterparts and had an independent 26% higher odds of being discharged with at least 80-mg furosemide. Chronic patients were also more frequently prescribed with furosemide and on higher doses, although, diabetes was not independently associated with the use of higher furosemide doses.

CONCLUSION

Diabetic patients are more intensively treated with the loop diuretic furosemide. In acute heart failure, diabetes is an independent predictor of furosemide dose.