Series: Cardiovascular outcome trials for diabetes drugs Degludec and DEVOTE

DEVOTE (Trial Comparing Cardiovascular Safety of Insulin Degludec versus Insulin Glargine in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes at High Risk of Cardio-vascular Events) was an FDA-mandated cardiovascular outcome trial and was the first – and at present the only – completed trial comparing two insulins. DEVOTE compared insulin degludec and insulin glargine (U100) in 7,637 people with type 2 diabetes with established cardiovascular disease, chronic kidney disease, or both, and older diabetic patients with increased cardiovascular risk. DEVOTE demonstrated non-inferiority for major cardiovascular events (MACE), a composite of death from cardiovascular causes, non-fatal myocardial infarction and non-fatal stroke, with a pre-specified non-inferiority margin of 1.3. At 24 months the mean HbA1c was similar in the two groups. Mean fasting plasma glucose was significantly lower in the degludec group than in the glargine group, and pre-specified severe hypoglycaemia was also significantly lower in the degludec group. DEVOTE satisfied the FDA cardiovascular safety requirements for new antidiabetic therapies.