Welcome back to the CardioNerds Cardiovascular Prevention Series, where we are continuing our discussion of Glucagon-like Peptide-1 Receptor Agonists (GLP-1 RAs). This class of medications is becoming a household name, not only for their implications for weight loss but also for their effect on cardiovascular disease. CardioNerds Dr. Ty Sweeney (CardioNerds Academy Faculty Member and incoming Cardiology Fellow at Boston Medical Center), Dr. Rick Ferraro (CardioNerds Academy House Faculty and Cardiology Fellow at Johns Hopkins Hospital), and special guest Dr. Franck Azobou (Cardiology Fellow at UT Southwestern) sat down with Dr. Darren McGuire (Cardiologist at UT Southwestern and Senior Editor of Diabetes and Vascular Disease Research) to discuss important trial data on GLP-1 RAs in patients with heart disease, as well as recent professional society guidelines on their use. Show notes were drafted by Dr. Ty Sweeney. Audio editing was performed by CardioNerds Intern student Dr. Diane Masket.
If you haven’t already, be sure to check out CardioNerds episode #350 where we discuss the basics and mechanism of action of GLP-1 RAs with Dr. Dennis Bruemmer.
This episode was produced in collaboration with the American Society of Preventive Cardiology (ASPC) with independent medical education grant support from Novo Nordisk. See below for continuing medical education credit.
Claim CME for this episode HERE.
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Pearls and Quotes - GLP-1 Agonists: Diving into the Data
Patients with diabetes and clinical atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) or who are at high risk of ASCVD benefit from treatment with a GLP-1 RA.
For persons with sufficient ASCVD risk and type 2 diabetes, GLP-1 RAs and SGLT2 inhibitors can, and often should, be used in combination. "Just like we don’t consider ‘and/or’ for the four pillars of guideline-directed medical therapy for heart failure with reduced ejection fraction, we shouldn’t parcel out these two therapeutic options...it should be both.”
Setting expectations with your patients regarding injection practices, side effects, and expected benefits can go a long way toward improving the patient experience with GLP-1 RAs.
Utilize a multidisciplinary approach when caring for patients on GLP-1 RAs. Build a team with your patient’s primary care provider, endocrinologist, clinical pharmacist, and nurse.
“This is really a cardiologist issue. These are no longer endocrinology or primary care drugs. We need to be prescribing them ourselves just like we did back in the nineties when we took over the statin prescriptions from the endocrinology domain...we need to lead the way.”
Show notes - GLP-1 Agonists: Diving into the Data
For which patients are GLP-1 RAs recommended to reduce the risk of major cardiac events?
For patients with type 2 diabetes and ASCVD, starting a GLP-1 RA carries a Class 1, Level of Evidence A recommendation in the most recent ESC and ACC guidelines.
For patients without diabetes or clinical ASCVD with an estimated 10-year risk of CVD exceeding 10%, consideration of starting a GLP-1 RA carries a Class 2b, Level of Evidence C recommendation to reduce CV risk.
The STEP-HFpEF trial showed that among patients with obesity and HFpEF, once-weekly semaglutide may be beneficial in terms of weight loss and quality of life.
The results of the FIGHT and LIVE trials question the utility and safety of liraglutide in treating patients with advanced HFrEF. Of the over 17,000 patients enrolled in the SELECT trial, about 25% had heart failure, of which about one-third had HFrEF. Stay tuned for sub-analyses from that trial for more info!
Can we still prescribe GLP-1 Ras in patients with well-controlled T2DM?
