Series: Cardiovascular outcome trials for diabetes drugs Sitagliptin and TECOS

Abstract

TECOS (Trial Evaluating Cardiovascular Outcomes with Sitagliptin) was an investigator-initiated cardiovascular outcome trial with sitagliptin. It compared sitagliptin and placebo in 14,671 subjects with type 2 diabetes and demonstrated non-inferiority for major cardiovascular events plus hospitalisation for unstable angina (cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, stroke, unstable angina) but not superiority. Rates of hospitalisation for heart failure did not differ between the sitagliptin and placebo groups, and there were no significant between-group differences in rates of acute pancreatitis or pancreatic cancer. The clinical role for dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitors is diminishing as they have not been demonstrated to reduce cardiovascular events and are not associated with weight reduction, but if a DPP-4 inhibitor is indicated, the results of TECOS show that sitagliptin appears safer than saxagliptin or alogliptin.