Boehringer Ingelheim and Eli Lilly (NYSE:LLY) touted post-hoc analyses today showing that Jardiance reduced the risk of cardiovascular death in people with Type II diabetes and established cardiovascular disease, independent of blood sugar control at the start of the study.
The companies also reported a reduced risk in cardiovascular death when Jardiance was added to first and second-line diabetes drugs. The data were presented by Silvio Inzucchi at the 53rd annual meeting of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes in Portugal.
“Now that we have a new option for reducing the risk of cardiovascular death among people with Type II diabetes, we are striving to better understand if there are differences in how patients can benefit,” Inzucchi, from the Yale School of Medicine, said in prepared remarks. “These new analyses of the Empa-Reg Outcome trial showed empagliflozin was effective in reducing the risk of cardiovascular death in patients with Type II diabetes and established cardiovascular disease, no matter what the blood sugar levels at the start of the study were or if empagliflozin was added to commonly used oral blood sugar lowering treatments.”
The Empa-Reg Outcome trial, which enrolled 7,020 patients, showed that Jardiance, empagliflozin, reduced the relative risk of cardiovascular death by 38% compared to a placebo in patients with Type II diabetes and established cardiovascular disease when added to standard of care.
In post-hoc analyses, researchers found that when Jardiance was added to metformin or sulphonylurea, the reduction in cardiovascular death was consistent with the overall trial population when compared to placebo.
Patients receiving Jardiance experienced a reduction in the risk of cardiovascular death independent of whether blood sugar control was improved before the study began, the companies reported.
“Cardiovascular disease is the primary cause of death in people with Type II diabetes,” Dr. David Kendall, Lilly Diabetes’ distinguished medical fellow, said. “The results presented at EASD provide further evidence of the benefit empagliflozin can provide to patients with different background blood sugar control.”
“The Boehringer Ingelheim and Eli Lilly Diabetes Alliance leads the paradigm shift in the treatment of people with Type II diabetes,” Georg van Husen, corporate SVP, head of cardiometabolism at Boehringer Ingelheim, added. “The Empa-Reg Outcome trial showed a remarkable reduction in CV death by 38% and the new data indicates that this effect is independent of the blood sugar control.”
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