A Comparative Study of efficacy and safety of different Sodium Glucose Co-transporter 2 (SGLT-2) Inhibitors in the Management of Patients with Type II Diabetes Mellitus

BACKGROUND

There are a handful of sodium glucose co-transporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors available in the global and Indian markets to manage type II diabetes mellitus (T2DM). However, head-to-head comparison between different SGLT2 inhibitors is scarce. Therefore, the present study was aimed to analyze the effect of different SGLT2 inhibitors on glycemic control and body weight in Indian patients with T2DM.

METHODS

This was a prospective, interventional, nonrandomized study that included patients (N = 480) of either sex, aged ≥30 years, with inadequately controlled T2DM having HbA1c > 8.5%, and were receiving either Canagliflozin, Empagliflozin, Dapagliflozin or Remogliflozin on the background of triple-drug therapy. In this study, patients were evaluated for HbA1c, fasting blood sugar (FBS), post-prandial blood sugar (PPBS), body weight, and systolic and diastolic blood pressure at baseline, 12 and 24 weeks.

RESULTS

A total of 480 patients who received either Canagliflozin (n = 120), Empagliflozin (n = 120), Dapagliflozin (n = 120), or Remogliflozin (n = 120) were included in this study. There was a significant reduction in levels of HbA1c, FBS, PPBS, body weight, systolic blood pressure (SBP), and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) at week 12 and 24 in all treatment groups. The difference in mean values of glycemic parameters and body weight was comparable across the treatment groups at week 12 and 24 but was not significant. Out of all 480 patients, 10 patients (2.08%) reported urinary tract infection (UTI), and five (1.04%) reported genital mycotic infection. All the five patients were females and treatment for UTI and mycotic infection was provided as required. Rest of the patients tolerated the therapy well.

CONCLUSION

Overall observations indicate that all the four SGLT2 inhibitors are effective in reducing HbA1c, FBS, PPBS, body weight SBP, and DBP. Therefore, gliflozins can be the best choice to start early in patients with inadequately controlled T2DM receiving triple-drug therapy which helps in controlling the parameters of glycemia and significantly reducing the body weight. Hence SGLT2 Inhibitors could be considered as an add-on to all antidiabetic agents currently used for the management of diabetes in Indian setting.