Benefit of Canagliflozin In Patients With Type 2 Diabetes After Hospitalization For Acute Heart Failure

Abstract BACKGROUND: Heart failure (HF) is one of the mayor contributors to cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in patients with diabetes. Sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors have demonstrated to reduce the risk of hospitalization for HF in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. We aimed to compare the incidence of readmission in patients who received canagliflozin at discharge after hospitalization of acute HF and changes in N-terminal pro–B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-ProBNP) concentration during follow-up. METHODS: We retrospectively included 102 consecutive patients with diabetes discharged for acute heart failure and without contraindications for SGLT2 inhibitors. We divided them in two groups: 45 patients with canagliflozin at discharge therapy and 57 without any SGLT2 inhibitors.RESULTS: Over a median follow-up of 22 months, 45 (44.1%) were hospitalized for HF. Most of the patients who were readmitted due to heart failure occurred during the first year (37.3%). HF readmission at first year occurred in 10 patients (22.2%) in canagliflozin group and 29 patients (49.1%) in control group (HR: 0.45; 95% CI: 0.21–0.96; p < 0.039) after multivariate adjustment. A composite outcome of hospitalization for HF or death for cardiovascular causes was lower in canagliflozin group (37.8%) than in the control group (70.2%) (HR: 0.51; 95% CI: 0.27–0.95; p < 0.035). Analysis of NT-ProBNP concentration showed an interaction between canagliflozin therapy and follow-up time (p=0.002).CONCLUSIONS: Canagliflozin therapy at discharge was associated with lower risk of readmission for HF and a reduction of NT-ProBNP concentration in patients with diabetes after hospitalization for HF.