Comparison of mortality in people with type 1 and type 2 diabetes by age of diagnosis: an incident population-based study in England and Wales.

Correspondence, refers to - The Lancet Commission on diabetes: using data to transform diabetes care and patient livesThe Lancet, Volume 396, Issue 10267, 19 December 2020–1 January 2021, Pages 2019-2082</div

Cardiovascular safety in type 2 diabetes with sulfonylureas as second-line drugs: a nation-wide population based comparative safety study

   Objective To assess the real-world cardiovascular (CV) safety for SU, in comparison with dipeptidylpeptidase-4 inhibitors (DPP4i) and thiazolidinediones (TZD) through development of robust methodology for causal inference in a whole nation study.  Research Design and Methods A cohort study was performed including people with type 2 diabetes diagnosed in Scotland before 31 December 2017, who failed to reach HbA1c 48 mmol/mol despite metformin monotherapy and initiated second-line pharmacotherapy (SU/DPP4i/TZD) on or after 1 January 2010. The primary outcome was the composite major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE), including hospitalization for myocardial infarction (MI), ischemic stroke, heart failure, and CV death. Secondary outcomes were each individual endpoint and all-cause death. Multivariable Cox proportional hazards regression and an instrumental variable (IV) approach were used to control confounding in a similar way to the randomization process in a randomized control trial.   Results Comparing SU to non-SU (DPP4i/TZD), the hazard ratio (HR) for MACE was 1.00 (95% CI: 0.91 to 1.09) from the multivariable Cox regression and 1.02 (0.91  - 1.13) and 1.03 (0.91- 1.16) using two different IVs. For all-cause death, the HR from Cox regression and the two IV analyses was 1.03 (0.94 - 1.13), 1.04 (0.93 - 1.17), and 1.03 (0.90 - 1.17).  Conclusion Our findings contribute to the understanding that second-line SU for glucose lowering are unlikely to increase CV risk or all-cause mortality. Given their potent efficacy, microvascular benefits, cost effectiveness and widespread use, this study supports that SU should remain a part of the global diabetes treatment portfolio.Article  </p