Introduction:
Dapagliflozin – a sodium-glucose co transport-2 (SGLT2) inhibitor has recently been introduced into clinical use for type 2 diabetes (T2DM) in Australia. We conducted an audit of patients attending General Practice and Blacktown Hospital Outpatient clinics who commenced dapagliflozin and followed up 3-6 months later.
Objectives:
To monitor trends in T2DM control before and 3-6 months after introduction of dapagliflozin and reasons for discontinuation.
Methodology:
98 Patients commencing dapagliflozin were identified from the outpatient clinics and GP case conference sessions. Clinic databases were used to collect patient demographic and clinical data: HbA1c, weight and blood pressure (BP). Multilevel linear regression was used to analyse change in each variable (adjusting for age and gender). Reasons for discontinuation of dapagliflozin were recorded.
Results:
Before dapagliflozin, mean HbA1c concentration was 9.1% (95% CI 8.6 to 9.7), weight 102.9kg (93.7 - 111.0), systolic BP 133.0 mmHg (127.9 to 138.1) and diastolic BP 81.3 mmHg (77.7 to 85.0). Mean change after introduction of dapagliflozin was -1.1% for HbA1c (-1.6 to -0.6, p<0.001), -2.6kg for weight (-4.0 to -1.1, p=0.001), -4.3mmHg for systolic BP(-9.5 to 0.9, p=0.104) and -2.9mmHg for diastolic BP(-6.5 to 0.8, p=0.121).
At 3-6 months follow-up, 10 patients had ceased dapagliflozin. Reasons included rash (n=1), nausea (n=2), possible candidiasis (n=1),urinary tract infection (n=1),urinary frequency/nocturia (n=3), non-compliance (n=2) and renal impairment (n=2). Euglycaemic ketoacidosis was not observed.
Conclusions:
Clinically meaningful reductions in HbA1c, weight and, potentially, BP, were observed following the introduction of dapagliflozin. These findings support the use of dapagliflozin as a second-line or third line oral hypoglycaemic agent. Discontinuation occurred in 10% of patients, for various reasons;a similar rate in real-life as that reported in clinical trials.