Acute kidney injury, renal impairment and renal failure associated with sodium glucose co-transporter-2 inhibitors in at-risk groups: A systematic review.

Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) show a reduction in acute kidney injury, renal impairment and acute renal failure after initiation of a sodium glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitor. Observational literature on the association is conflicting, but important to understand for populations with a higher risk of medication-related adverse renal events. We aimed to systematically review the literature to summarize the association between sodium glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitor use and acute kidney injury, renal impairment and acute renal failure in three at-risk groups: older people aged >65 years, people with heart failure and people with reduced renal function. A systematic search of Embase (1974 until 23 February 2024) and PubMed (1946 until 23 February 2024) was performed. RCTs were included if they reported numbers of acute kidney injury or acute renal failure in people using sodium glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitors compared to other diabetic therapies. Studies needed to report results by level of renal function, heart failure status or age. Of 922 results, eight studies were included. The absolute risk of acute kidney injury or acute renal failure was higher in people >65 years compared to those <65 years, higher in people with heart failure (vs without) and higher in people with reduced kidney function (vs preserved kidney function), but insufficient evidence to determine if the relative effect of sodium glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitors on this risk was similar for each group. At-risk cohorts are associated with a higher incidence of acute kidney problems in users of sodium glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitors.

The association between sodium glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitors vs dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors and renal outcomes in people discharged from hospital with type 2 diabetes: A population-based cohort study.

BACKGROUND: We investigated the association between post-hospital discharge use of sodium glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitors (SGLT-2is) compared to dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors (DPP-4is) and the incidence of hospitalization for acute renal failure (ARF) and chronic kidney disease (CKD) in people with type 2 diabetes. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective cohort study using linked hospital and prescription data. Our cohort included people aged ≥30 years with type 2 diabetes discharged from a hospital in Victoria, Australia, from December 2013 to June 2018. We compared new users of SGLT-2is with new users of DPP-4is following discharge. People were followed from first dispensing of a SGLT-2i or DPP-4i to a subsequent hospital admission for ARF or CKD. We used competing risk models with inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW) to estimate subhazard ratios. RESULTS: In total, 9620 people initiated SGLT-2is and 9962 initiated DPP-4is. The incidence rate of ARF was 12.3 per 1000 person-years (median years of follow-up [interquartile range [IQR] 1.4 [0.7-2.2]) among SGLT-2i initiators and 18.9 per 1000 person-years (median years of follow-up [IQR] 1.7 [0.8-2.6]) among DPP-4i initiators (adjusted subhazard ratio with IPTW 0.78; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.70-0.86). The incidence rate of CKD was 6.0 per 1000 person-years (median years of follow-up [IQR] 1.4 [0.7-2.2]) among SGLT-2i initiators and 8.9 per 1000 person-years (median years of follow-up [IQR] 1.7 [0.8-2.6]) among DPP-4i initiators (adjusted subhazard ratio with IPTW 0.83; 95% CI 0.73-0.94). CONCLUSIONS: Real-world data support using SGLT-2is over DPP-4is for preventing acute and chronic renal events in people with type 2 diabetes.

Impact of a pharmacy technician on clinical pharmacy services in an Australian hospital.

Background There is increasing recognition for the role of pharmacy technicians in obtaining medication histories and performing administrative tasks which may represent an opportunity cost when completed by pharmacists. Technician-enhanced teams can therefore improve hospital clinical pharmacy services. In Australian hospitals, medication reconciliation and reviews can be documented in Medication Management Plans (MMPs) upon admission. Thus, MMPs can be used as feasible measures of the efficiency of pharmacy teams. Objective To quantify the impact of a technician-enhanced clinical pharmacy model on medication reconciliation and timeliness of pharmacist tasks. Setting 480-bed tertiary teaching hospital in New South Wales. Method The effect of a technician working alongside the geriatric pharmacist in a single hospital was evaluated. Outcomes were measured throughout two 4-week periods pre- and post-implementation for patients under the supervision of a geriatrician who were discharged during usual business hours. Data were collected by the supervising pharmacist. Main outcome measure Primary outcomes were the number of MMPs completed daily on average and during admission, as well as the timeliness of updating discharge summaries, medication histories and MMPs. Results The mean number of daily MMPs significantly increased from 2.25 to 4.90 with the technician (p < 0.001, 95% CI 1.66 to 3.64). The median time to update discharge summary significantly decreased from 6:48 to 2:33 h (p = 0.01). Conclusion This study suggested that technician-enhanced teams could improve the efficiency of clinical pharmacy services in an Australian hospital.