Effect of a low dose of empagliflozin on short-term outcomes in type 2 diabetics with acute coronary syndrome after percutaneous coronary intervention

OBJECTIVES: To study the effects of low dose of empagliflozin on improving outcomes in diabetic patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). METHODS: This double-blind controlled clinical trial was carried out on 93 diabetic patients (56 males and 37 females, mean age of 56.55 years) with ACS who underwent PCI at 2 university teaching hospitals in 2020, Ahvaz, Iran. The patients were randomly assigned to receive empagliflozin (10 mg once daily) or placebo at similar doses for 6 months after PCI. In addition, to standard treatments with another hypoglycemic agent. Cardiovascular outcomes (including all-cause mortality, coronary revascularization, rehospitalization due to unstable angina, hospitalization due to heart failure, cardiovascular death, non-fetal myocardial infarction, and non-fetal stroke) were evaluated during period of 6 months follow-up after the empagliflozin treatment. RESULTS: There was no significant difference between the low dose empagliflozin and placebo groups after treatment in terms of cardiovascular mortality (2.2% versus [vs.] 4.2%; p=0.598), rehospitalization due to unstable angina (4.5% vs. 8.7%; p=0.433), and coronary revascularization (2.2% vs. 0%; p=0.312). CONCLUSION: The results of this study showed that adding low dose empagliflozin to standard care of ACS diabetic patients after PCI was associated with no significant reduction in negative cardiovascular outcomes during 6 months.