Liraglutide Linked to Lower Renal Disease Risk With Diabetes

Liraglutide was associated with a lower risk for developing renal disease in patients with type 2 diabetes, according to a secondary analysis of the Liraglutide Effect and Action in Diabetes: Evaluation of Cardiovascular Outcome Results (LEADER) trial.

The LEADER trial assessed the effects of liraglutide on the risk for cardiovascular events among participants with type 2 diabetes who were at a high risk for cardiovascular disease. A total of 9340 participants were randomly assigned to receive either liraglutide or placebo and were followed for a median 3.84 years.
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In their analysis of LEADER, the researchers assessed the secondary renal outcome: a composite of new-onset persistent macroalbuminuria, persistent doubling of serum creatinine level, end-stage renal disease, and renal-related mortality. They also calculated the risk for renal outcomes and changes in estimated glomerular filtration rate.

Their analyses showed that the renal outcome occurred in fewer participants who received liraglutide compared with participants in the placebo group (268 out of 4668 vs 337 out of 4672, respectively). The most common renal outcome was new onset of persistent macroalbuminuria, which occurred in more participants in the placebo group compared with those in the liraglutide group (215 vs 161, respectively).

However, the rates of adverse renal events were similar between the liraglutide and placebo groups (15.1 per 1000 patients-years vs 16.5 events per 1000 patient-years, respectively). This included the rate of acute kidney injury, which was 7.1 per 1000 patient-years in the liraglutide group and was 6.2 per 1000 patient-years in the placebo group.

“This prespecified secondary analysis shows that, when added to usual care, liraglutide resulted in lower rates of the development and progression of diabetic kidney disease than placebo,” the researchers concluded.

—Melissa Weiss

Reference:

Mann JFE, Ørsted DD, Brown-Frandsen K, et al. Liraglutide and renal outcomes in type 2 diabetes [published online August 31, 2017]. N Engl J Med. doi:10.1056/NEJMoa1616011.