Student Department of Pharmacy Practice, Manipal College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, India
Background: Dapagliflozin was approved by the FDA for the treatment and prevention of the progression of chronic kidney disease in patients regardless of diabetes. It was approved in India in the year 2015. Characteristics of patients receiving dapagliflozin in tertiary care hospitals in India have not been described which necessitates the need for this study.
Objectives: To describe the clinical characteristics of patients prescribed with dapagliflozin in a tertiary care teaching hospital in India.
Methods: Cases were identified through the hospital formulary code for dapagliflozin from the information technology department. Hospitalized patients above 18 years of age prescribed with dapagliflozin between January 2019 to May 2021 were included and incomplete patient records were excluded. Data were collected retrospectively from the case files of patients. Variables ascertained included demographics, body mass index (BMI), comorbidities, dose, and concomitant medications. Continuous data were summarized as Median ± IQR and categorical data as frequencies with percentages. Statistical analysis was carried out using Jamovi 2.3.
Results: Of 309 dapagliflozin recipients, 70% were males. The median age was 63 ± 13 years, and the median BMI was 24.4 ± 4.9 kg/m2. The most prevalent comorbidities were cardiovascular diseases (95%) followed by kidney diseases (19%) and thyroid disorders (9%). All the patients were administered dapagliflozin either alone (94%) or as a fixed drug combination with metformin (6.1%). The most frequent dose was 10 mg as a single agent (92%) and as a combination with metformin was found to be 10/500mg (4%). The majority of concomitant diabetic drugs were sulfonylureas (61%) followed by biguanides (52%) and insulin (29%). Among the study population, 96% received statins and 92.88% received antiplatelet medications for their cardiovascular diseases with dapagliflozin.
Conclusions: The current study identified the clinical characteristics of patients prescribed with dapagliflozin in a tertiary care teaching hospital in India. The most prevalent comorbidity was cardiovascular diseases. The majority of the patients were prescribed dapagliflozin as alone or in combination with 10mg as the most frequently preferred dose. The major concomitant drugs for diabetes were sulfonylureas and for cardiovascular diseases were statins. The study can aid physicians in prescribing dapagliflozin in day-to-day healthcare settings.
