SGLT2i Use and Improved QoL, Functional Capacity in Adults With HF: Daily Dose

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Patient Care brings primary care clinicians a lot of medical news every day—it’s easy to miss an important study. The Daily Dose provides a concise summary of one of the website's leading stories you may not have seen.

Last week, we reported on findings from a study published in JAMA Network Open that examined the association between sodium glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitor (SGLT2i) use and improved functional capacity and quality of life (QOL) among patients with heart failure (HF).

The study

Researchers conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of the Medline, EMBASE, and Cochrane databases. They searched for relevant randomized clinical trials (RCTs) published until July 31, 2023, that focused only on nonpregnant patients aged 18 years and older with HF.

QOL was assessed using the Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire-12 (KCCQ-12), which evaluates various aspects of QOL in patients with HF, including physical limitations, symptom frequency, QOL perception, and social limitations.

Main outcomes included change in peak VO₂, 6MWD, KCCQ-12-total symptom score (TSS), KCCQ-12 clinical summary score (KCCQ-CSS), KCCQ-12 overall summary score (KCCQ-OSS), and the proportion of participants with small (≥5 points), moderate (≥10 points), or large (≥15 points) improvement in KCCQ-12 scores at the end of the study.

The findings

The analysis included 17 RCTs with 23 523 patients (mean age, 69 years), of whom 36% were women and 46% had type 2 diabetes. Results showed that SGLT2i therapy was associated with significantly higher performance on all 5 functional capacity and QOL end points evaluated, regardless of sex, diabetes status, or ejection fraction.

Authors' comment

"These findings suggest that SGLT2i therapies should be considered for improving functional capacity and QOL in addition to reducing the risk of hospitalization and mortality among patients with HF."

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