Cardiovascular safety of sitagliptin demonstrated

A number of novel hypoglycaemic agents have entered into usage over the last decade and are now in widespread use in clinical practice. Amongst these are the dipeptidyl peptidase 4 (DPP-4) inhibitors, which improve glycaemic control by increasing endogenous insulin secretion and suppressing glucagon levels. Data from recent studies has questioned the cardiovascular safety of DPP-4 inhibitors with meta-analyses suggesting increased rates of heart failure hospitalization with use of DPP-4 inhibitors. In large Trial Evaluating Cardiovascular Outcomes with Sitagliptin (TECOS), the cardiovascular safety of the DPP-4 inhibitor sitagliptin was assessed when added to usual therapy in patients with type II diabetes and a history of cardiovascular disease. In this international, double-blind trial, 14,671 patients were randomized to either sitagliptin or …