AIM To assess the efficacy and tolerability of adjunct therapy with a sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitor, dapagliflozin, compared with insulin escalation for patients with uncontrolled type 2 diabetes on current insulin therapy.

METHODS A 12-month retrospective case-control study of patients with glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) > 7% on insulin therapy. The study group received add-on therapy with dapagliflozin (10 mg once daily); the control group received titrated increases of their existing insulin dose by a mean of 21.6% from baseline. The primary endpoint was the change in HbA1c after 12 months. Secondary outcomes included changes in fasting plasma glucose, postprandial 2-h glucose levels, insulin requirements, and body weight.

RESULTS After 12 months, the reduction in HbA1c was significantly greater in the dapagliflozin group than in the control group (from 8.9 ± 1.2% to 8.0 ± 1.0% vs 9.1 ± 1.2% to 8.7 ± 1.5%, respectively). Results for fasting plasma glucose and postprandial 2-h glucose were similar. Dapagliflozin therapy decreased systolic blood pressure (-4.7 mmHg) and body weight (-1.4 kg) significantly, whereas body weight increased by 0.6 kg in the control group. The dapagliflozin group showed significantly fewer hypoglycemic events than the control group (18.5% vs 32.6%, respectively). Daily insulin dose increased by 5.4 ± 6.1 U (21.6%) in the control group but decreased by 1.9 ± 5.3 U (-4.5%) in the dapagliflozin group (p < 0.001).

CONCLUSION As an adjunct to insulin therapy, dapagliflozin therapy significantly improved glycemic control, with the clinical advantages of weight loss, insulin sparing, and less hypoglycemia.