Protein-rich diet may lower mortality risk in kidney disease patients: Study
Following a diet rich in proteins may help lower the risk of death among people with chronic kidney disease (CKD), claims a study.
Using a combination of sodium-glucose co-transporter 2 inhibitors (SGLT2is) and glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP1-RAs) is likely to offer additional protection against heart and kidney disease in patients with diabetes, according to a study.
SGLT2is, also called gliflozins, are a class of drugs that lower blood glucose by increasing its excretion in the urine, while GLP-1RAs, such as Ozempic, work by enhancing insulin release and sensitivity.
Impaired glucose control in patients with diabetes is known to cause damage to blood vessels in the heart and kidneys.
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According to lead author Brendon Neuen, Clinical Associate Professor from The George Institute for Global Health, “the rapidly expanding indications for the use of GLP-1 receptor agonists, makes it important to look at their effects with SGLT2 inhibitors”.
The new findings, published in The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology, are based on a meta-analysis of 12 large-scale, placebo-controlled trials of SGLT2is involving 73,238 patients with diabetes, 3,065 of whom were already receiving GLP1-RAs.
The results showed that SGLT2is reduced the risk of heart attack, stroke, or cardiovascular death by 11 per cent, independent of GLP1-RAs.
It also decreased hospitalisation for heart failure or cardiovascular death by 23 per cent versus placebo, even when added to GLP1-RAs.
Further, the drug SGLT2is also reduced the risk of chronic kidney disease progression by 33 per cent when added to GLP1-RAs and slowed the annual loss of kidney function by almost 60 per cent when added to GLP-1RAs.
Importantly, no new safety concerns were identified when SGLT2is and GLP-1RAs were used in combination, the team said.
Both classes of medicines work independently of each other — SGLT2 inhibitors against heart failure and chronic kidney disease; GLP-1 receptor agonists against heart attack, stroke, and also kidney disease, Neuen said.
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