THURSDAY, Oct. 4, 2018 (HealthDay News) -- For patients with type 2 diabetes and existing cardiovascular disease, albiglutide results in fewer cardiovascular events, according to a study published online Oct. 2 in The Lancet to coincide with the annual meeting of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes, held from Oct. 1 to 5 in Berlin.
Noting that in 2017, GlaxoSmithKline withdrew the glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist albiglutide for commercial reasons, Adrian F. Hernandez, M.D., from the Duke University School of Medicine in Durham, N.C., and colleagues presented the results from a randomized multicenter international trial involving albiglutide. Patients aged 40 years and older with type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease were randomly assigned to receive a subcutaneous injection of albiglutide or a matched volume of placebo (4,731 and 4,732 patients, respectively).
The intention-to-treat population was followed for a median of 1.6 years for the primary outcome. The researchers found that the primary composite outcome (first occurrence of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, or stroke) occurred in 7 and 9 percent of patients in the albiglutide and placebo groups, respectively (hazard ratio, 0.78), indicating that albiglutide was superior to placebo (P < 0.0001 for noninferiority; P = 0.0006 for superiority).
"Harmony-Outcomes was an important study for us to complete to generate new data and insights about the role of the GLP-1 receptor agonist class in the management of patients with diabetes and cardiovascular disease," John Lepore, M.D., from GlaxoSmithKline, said in a statement. "We continue to explore opportunities to divest this medicine to a company with the right expertise and resources to realize its full potential for patients."
Several authors disclosed financial ties to pharmaceutical companies, including GlaxoSmithKline, which funded the study.
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