Introduction & Objective: It is unclear whether glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonist (GLP-1 RA) treatments improve population-level diabetes-related outcomes. This study examined the impact of GLP-1 RA uptake on population-level HbA1c in US adults with type 2 diabetes.
Methods: This retrospective study used data from the Optum Clinformatics® Data Mart (01/2004-12/2022). Time series regressions were used to examine associations between HbA1c-related outcomes and the proportion of patients on newer GLP-1 RAs of interest (dulaglutide, once-weekly or oral semaglutide, and tirzepatide). Interrupted time series analyses were used to assess temporal trends in population-level HbA1c outcomes. Both analyses were adjusted for potential confounders.
Results: With more patients taking newer GLP-1 RAs, average population-level HbA1c decreased significantly (at 7-9 months of lag), and the proportion of patients with HbA1c <7% increased significantly (at 5-9 months of lag; Fig 1A). Interrupted time series analyses (Fig 1B-C) showed that average HbA1c decreased and the proportion of patients with HbA1c <7% increased after the introduction of newer GLP-1 RAs in 2014.
Conclusion: Increased adoption of newer GLP-1 RAs is associated with lower average HbA1c and higher proportion of HbA1c <7% at the population level. Population-level HbA1c control was improved after the first newer GLP-1 RA approval.
L. Lv: Employee; Novo Nordisk. Y. Wang: Other Relationship; Novo Nordisk. L. Xie: None. J. Noone: Employee; Novo Nordisk. S.B. Alvarez: Employee; Novo Nordisk. Y. Zhang: Other Relationship; Novo Nordisk. Y. Song: Other Relationship; Novo Nordisk. D.M. Rotroff: Consultant; Novo Nordisk. Research Support; Bayer Inc.
