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Comparison of Type 2 Diabetes Pharmacotherapy Regimens

Comparison of Type 2 Diabetes Pharmacotherapy Regimens Using Targeted Learning

Status
Completed
Phases
Unknown
Study type
Observational
Source
ClinicalTrials.gov
Registry ID
NCT05073692
Acronym
ON TARGET DM
Enrollment
241981
Registered
2021-10-11
Start date
2021-07-01
Completion date
2025-03-12
Last updated
2025-11-21

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus, Cardiovascular Diseases

Keywords

Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus, Cardiovascular Diseases, Medication, Treatment

Brief summary

This study is designed to help patients with type 2 diabetes and their clinicians: (a) identify which glucose lowering medications have the most favorable effects on heart health and other patient-important outcomes, (b) inform the timing of medication initiation, and (c) identify whether medication benefits apply equally to all adults with type 2 diabetes, or may be different based on age, sex, race/ethnicity, baseline heart health status, baseline renal function, or other factors.

Detailed description

The study will conduct head-to-head comparisons of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) treatment strategies using observational data from real-world clinical settings to assess cardiovascular disease (CVD) outcomes and other patient-centered outcomes in T2DM patients with moderate baseline CVD risk who are treated with each of these four classes of glucose-lowering medications known as SGLT2, GLP-1RA, DPP4, and SU. To mitigate bias concerns related to confounding and informative loss to follow-up, analyses will be based on modern causal inference methods combined with machine learning that emulate intention-to-treat (ITT) and per-protocol (PP) analyses of pragmatic randomized trials with active comparators to provide the most robust and precise estimates of relative and absolute effects we would expect in usual care settings. Specific Aims and Hypotheses: Aim 1. Compare the effect off SGLT21, GLP-1RA, DPP4, and SU on each study outcome in adults with T2DM when each type of medication is (a) initiated as second-line therapy after metformin, and (b) initiated as first-, second-, or third-line therapy, or after any history of glucose-lowering therapy independent of prior metformin use. Aim 2. Compare the effect on each study outcome of earlier versus later initiation of SGLT2i, GLP-1RA, DPP4, SU as first-, or second-, or third-line therapy, or after any history of glucose-lowering therapy triggered by various changes in A1C, or CVD risk, or other patient characteristics. Aim 3. Assess in each of the prior analyses whether the treatment effects on study outcomes vary across categories of baseline CVD risk and CVD event history, renal function, congestive heart failure status, age, sex and race/ethnicity, or other patient characteristics. Glucose-lowering medications will be compared at both the class and agent level. The key outcomes that will be considered are MACE 3-point, Myocardial Infarction, Stroke, Heart Failure, Hospitalization, Coronary or Carotid Artery Stent or Bypass Procedure, CVD Mortality, Overall Mortality. Additional patient-centered outcomes will be specified based on insights from stakeholder members of the research team.

Interventions

DRUGSU

Exposure to the class of drugs known as Sulfonylureas (SU)

DRUGDPP4

Exposure to the class of drugs known as Dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors (DPP4)

DRUGSGLT2i

Exposure to the class of drugs known as Sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitors (SGLT2i)

Exposure to the class of drugs known as Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RA)

DRUGSGLT2i or GLP-1RA

Exposure to either SGLT2i or GLP-1RA

DRUGLinagliptin (DPP4)

Exposure to agent Linagliptin (DPP4)

DRUGExenatide (GLP-1RA)

Exposure to agent Exenatide (GLP1-RA)

DRUGLiraglutide (GLP-1RA)

Exposure to agent Liraglutide (GLP-1RA)

Exposure to agent Empagliflozin (SGLT2i)

DRUGGlimepiride (SU)

Exposure to agent Glimepiride (SU)

DRUGGlipizide (SU)

Exposure to Glimepiride (SU)

DRUGGlimepiride (SU) or Glipizide (SU)

Exposure to agent Glimepiride (SU) or Glipizide (SU)

DRUGSU or DPP4 (excluding saxagliptin and alogliptin)

Exposure to either SU or DPP4 excluding Saxagliptin and Alogliptin

DRUGExenatide (GLP-1RA) or Liraglutide (GLP-1RA)

Exposure to either Exenatide (GLP-1RA) or Liraglutide (GLP-1RA)

Sponsors

Geisinger Clinic
CollaboratorOTHER
Henry Ford Health System
CollaboratorOTHER
HealthPartners Institute
CollaboratorOTHER
Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute
CollaboratorOTHER
Kaiser Permanente
Lead SponsorOTHER

Study design

Observational model
COHORT
Time perspective
RETROSPECTIVE

Eligibility

Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to 85 Years
Healthy volunteers
No

Inclusion criteria

* Dispensing of either of the set of drugs being compared * No prior dispensing of nor contraindication for any of the drugs compared * Evidence of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus diagnosis * Age 18 or older * Not currently pregnant * No evidence of dementia or short-term life expectancy from prior cancer diagnoses * History of ≥2 years of continuous health plan membership * ≥1 A1c test in the past 18 months

Design outcomes

Primary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Incidence of 3-point Major Adverse Cardiovascular Events (MACE)2.5 years3-point MACE is defined as a single outcome measure, which is a composite measure of nonfatal myocardial infarction, nonfatal stroke, or cardiovascular disease death.

Countries

United States

Participant flow

Participants by arm

ArmCount
SU Initiators
Initiators of Sulfonylurea between 01/01/2014 and 12/31/2021; sample size N=212,042.
212
DPP4 Initiators
Initiators of DPP4 between 01/01/2014 and 12/31/2021; sample size N=5,862.
5
SGLT2i Initiators
Initiators of SGLT2i between 01/01/2014 and 12/31/2021; sample size N=14,858.
14
GLP-1RA Initiators
Initiators of GLP-1RA between 01/01/2014 and 12/31/2021; sample size N=9,219.
9
Total240

Baseline characteristics

CharacteristicSU InitiatorsDPP4 InitiatorsSGLT2i InitiatorsGLP-1RA InitiatorsTotal
Age, Continuous56.91 years
STANDARD_DEVIATION 12.91
61.69 years
STANDARD_DEVIATION 12.88
60.51 years
STANDARD_DEVIATION 11.95
55.95 years
STANDARD_DEVIATION 12.34
57.21 years
STANDARD_DEVIATION 12.88
Ethnicity (NIH/OMB)
Hispanic or Latino
78,965 Participants1,098 Participants3,501 Participants1,943 Participants85507 Participants
Ethnicity (NIH/OMB)
Not Hispanic or Latino
133,077 Participants4,764 Participants11,357 Participants7,276 Participants156474 Participants
Ethnicity (NIH/OMB)
Unknown or Not Reported
0 Participants0 Participants0 Participants0 Participants0 Participants
Race (NIH/OMB)
American Indian or Alaska Native
1,505 Participants26 Participants92 Participants48 Participants1671 Participants
Race (NIH/OMB)
Asian
33,756 Participants735 Participants2,690 Participants731 Participants37912 Participants
Race (NIH/OMB)
Black or African American
20,977 Participants669 Participants1,483 Participants1,343 Participants24472 Participants
Race (NIH/OMB)
More than one race
5,740 Participants186 Participants662 Participants523 Participants7111 Participants
Race (NIH/OMB)
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
3,303 Participants61 Participants371 Participants143 Participants3878 Participants
Race (NIH/OMB)
Unknown or Not Reported
43,333 Participants496 Participants1,894 Participants822 Participants46545 Participants
Race (NIH/OMB)
White
103,428 Participants3,689 Participants7,666 Participants5,609 Participants120392 Participants
Sex: Female, Male
Female
95,560 Participants3,123 Participants6,537 Participants5,319 Participants110539 Participants
Sex: Female, Male
Male
116,482 Participants2,739 Participants8,321 Participants3,900 Participants131442 Participants

Adverse events

Event typeEG000
affected / at risk
EG001
affected / at risk
EG002
affected / at risk
EG003
affected / at risk
deaths
Total, all-cause mortality
4,867 / 212,042235 / 5,862117 / 14,858109 / 9,219
other
Total, other adverse events
0 / 00 / 00 / 00 / 0
serious
Total, serious adverse events
0 / 00 / 00 / 00 / 0

Outcome results

Primary

Incidence of 3-point Major Adverse Cardiovascular Events (MACE)

3-point MACE is defined as a single outcome measure, which is a composite measure of nonfatal myocardial infarction, nonfatal stroke, or cardiovascular disease death.

Time frame: 2.5 years

ArmMeasureValue (COUNT_OF_PARTICIPANTS)
SU InitiatorsIncidence of 3-point Major Adverse Cardiovascular Events (MACE)11,348 Participants
DPP4 InitiatorsIncidence of 3-point Major Adverse Cardiovascular Events (MACE)393 Participants
SGLT2i InitiatorsIncidence of 3-point Major Adverse Cardiovascular Events (MACE)424 Participants
GLP-1RA InitiatorsIncidence of 3-point Major Adverse Cardiovascular Events (MACE)296 Participants

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Feb 4, 2026