Predictors of the therapeutic efficacy and consideration of the best combination therapy of sodium-glucose co-transporter 2 inhibitors

Background: We investigated the predictive markers for the therapeutic efficacy and the best combination of sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors (empagliflozin, dapagliflozin, and ipragliflozin) therapy in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Methods: A total of 804 patients with T2DM who had taken SGLT2 inhibitor as monotherapy or an add-on therapy were analyzed. Multivariate regression analyses were performed to identify the predictors of SGLT2 inhibitor response including the classes of baseline anti-diabetic medications. Results: After adjusting for age, sex, baseline body mass index (BMI), diabetes duration, duration of SGLT2 inhibitor use, initial glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) level, estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), and other anti-diabetic agent usage, multivariate analysis revealed that shorter diabetes duration, higher initial HbA1c and eGFR were associated with better glycemic response. However, baseline BMI was inversely correlated with glycemic status; lean subjects with well-controlled diabetes and obese subjects with inadequately controlled diabetes received more benefit from SGLT2 inhibitor treatment. In addition, dipeptidyl peptidase 4 (DPP4) inhibitor use was related to a greater reduction in HbA1c in patients with higher baseline HbA1c ≥7%. Sulfonylurea users experienced a larger change from baseline HbA1c but the significance was lost after adjustment for covariates and metformin and thiazolidinedione use did not affect the glycemic outcome. Conclusion: A better response to SGLT2 inhibitors is expected in Korean T2DM patients who have higher baseline HbA1c and eGFR with a shorter diabetes duration. Moreover, the add-on of an SGLT2 inhibitor to a DPP4 inhibitor is likely to show the greatest glycemic response.