Major Cardiovascular Event Risk Increased With Discontinuation of GLP-1 RAs in T2D

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By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter

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Medically reviewed by Carmen Pope, BPharm. Last updated on March 31, 2026.

via HealthDay

TUESDAY, March 31, 2026 -- For adults with type 2 diabetes, discontinuation of glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs) is associated with an increased risk for major adverse cardiovascular events, according to a study published online March 18 in BMJ Medicine.

Yan Xie, Ph.D., from Veterans Affairs Saint Louis Health Care System, and colleagues characterized patterns of GLP-1 RA use in a target trial emulation involving Veterans Affairs users with type 2 diabetes who started treatment with GLP-1 RAs (132,551 participants) or sulfonylureas (201,136 participants) and were followed for three years. Treatment status was reassigned every six months in the GLP-1 RA arm.

The researchers found a duration-dependent association between GLP-1 RA use and cumulative three-year risk for major adverse cardiovascular events. Incidence risk ratios were close to 1.0, with no significant reduction in the risk for major adverse cardiovascular events at three years for participants who used GLP-1 RAs for 0.5, 1.0, or 1.5 years before discontinuing compared with the sulfonylurea reference group. The reduction in the risk for major adverse cardiovascular events was significant for those who continued to use GLP-1 RAs for 2.0 and 2.5 years before discontinuing (incidence risk ratio, 0.93 and 0.85, respectively) and was most pronounced for those who continued to use GLP-1 RAs for the whole three-year period (incidence risk ratio, 0.82). Discontinuing treatment for 0.5 years was associated with an increased risk for major adverse cardiovascular events (incidence risk ratio, 1.04)

"Clinicians should treat adherence to GLP-1 treatment as an important outcome in its own right -- not an afterthought," senior author Ziyad Al-Aly, M.D., also from Veterans Affairs Saint Louis Health Care System, said in a statement.

Two authors disclosed ties to Pfizer.

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Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.

Source: HealthDay

Posted : 2026-04-01 01:57

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