SGLT2 Inhibition in HFpEF. Do We Need More Quantitative and Load Independent Metrics to Understand the Results of the EMPEROR-Preserved Trial?

Pharmacovigilance study for SGLT 2 inhibitors- Safety review of real-world data & randomized clinical trials

PURPOSE

Despite effectiveness of sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT 2) inhibitors, concerns have been raised about the potential side effects of these drugs. Thus, a pharmaco-vigilance study was designed that aims to identify any discrepancies between the reported adverse events & assess the safety profile of SGLT2 inhibitors.

METHODS

We studied diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA), euglycemic DKA, amputation, urinary tract infection (UTI), mycotic genital infection & hypotension associated with empagliflozin, dapagliflozin, canagliflozin & ertugliflozin in RCTs and reporting databases. WHO's VigiBase, FAERS, EMA's EudraVigilance & DAEN were thoroughly studied to obtain spontaneously reported real-world adverse events.

RESULTS

Different SGLT2 inhibitors exhibit varied side effect profiles. Additionally, the findings suggest that adverse events may be more likely to occur in a broader population in the real world than in a highly inclusive clinical trial subset CONCLUSION: Our study provides comparison of the real world reported adverse events to adverse events reported in the clinical trials studying the efficacy of SGLT 2 inhibitors.

Systematic review and meta-analysis for the value of cardiac magnetic resonance strain to predict cardiac outcomes

Cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) is the gold standard for the diagnostic classification and risk stratification in most patients with cardiac disorders. The aim of the present study was to investigate the ability of Strain-encoded MR (SENC) for the prediction of major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE). A systematic review and meta-analysis was performed according to the PRISMA Guidelines, including patients with or without cardiovascular disease and asymptomatic individuals. Myocardial strain by HARP were used as pulse sequences in 1.5 T scanners. Published literature in MEDLINE (PubMed) and Cochrane's databases were explored before February 2023 for studies assessing the clinical utility of myocardial strain by Harmonic Phase Magnetic Resonance Imaging (HARP), Strain-encoded MR (SENC) or fast-SENC. In total, 8 clinical trials (4 studies conducted in asymptomatic individuals and 4 in patients with suspected or known cardiac disease) were included in this systematic review, while 3 studies were used for our meta-analysis, based on individual patient level data. Kaplan-Meier analysis and Cox proportional hazard models were used, testing the ability of myocardial strain by HARP and SENC/fast-SENC for the prediction of MACE. Strain enabled risk stratification in asymptomatic individuals, predicting MACE and the development of incident heart failure. Of 1332 patients who underwent clinically indicated CMR, including SENC or fast-SENC acquisitions, 19 patients died, 28 experienced non-fatal infarctions, 52 underwent coronary revascularization and 86 were hospitalized due to heart failure during median 22.4 (17.2-28.5) months of follow-up. SENC/fast-SENC, predicted both all-cause mortality and MACE with high accuracy (HR = 3.0, 95% CI = 1.2-7.6, p = 0.02 and HR = 4.1, 95% CI = 3.0-5.5, respectively, p < 0.001). Using hierarchical Cox-proportional hazard regression models, SENC/fast-SENC exhibited incremental value to clinical data and conventional CMR parameters. Reduced myocardial strain predicts of all-cause mortality and cardiac outcomes in symptomatic patients with a wide range of ischemic or non-ischemic cardiac diseases, whereas in asymptomatic individuals, reduced strain was a precursor of incident heart failure.