Bidirectional relationship between kidney disease progression and cardiovascular events in type 2 diabetes: new Insights from the CANVAS Program and CREDENCE trial
Authors: Neuen B L , Ostrominski J W , Claggett B L , Beldhuis I , Chatur S , Arnott C , Heerspink H J L , Pollock C , Jardine M , Mahaffey K W , Perkovic V , Solomon S D , Vaduganathan M 
Published: October 2024

Background

The extent to which chronic kidney disease (CKD) progression increases cardiovascular risk, and whether different types of cardiovascular events affect risk of CKD progression, is incompletely understood.

Purpose

We sought to explore risk of cardiovascular events before and after CKD progression, and CKD progression before and after different cardiovascular events in patients with type 2 diabetes.

Methods

We conducted a pooled individual participant data analysis of the CANVAS Program and CREDENCE trial. Using Poisson regression, we assessed the incidence of major adverse cardiovascular events ([MACE] stroke, myocardial infarction, or cardiovascular death) and hospitalised heart failure (HHF) or cardiovascular death before and after CKD progression (defined as 40% decline in estimated glomerular filtration rate [eGFR] or kidney failure), and CKD progression before and after nonfatal cardiovascular events, with no adjustment for confounding related to subgroups defined by post-randomization variables. We estimated the cumulative incidence of all-cause mortality after different nonfatal cardiovascular and kidney outcomes, including different thresholds of CKD progression (kidney failure, 40% or 50% decline in eGFR or doubling of serum creatine) using Cox regression models.

Results

Among 14,464 participants (mean age 63.7 years, 35.3% female, mean eGFR 55mL/min/1.73m2 and median urinary albumin:creatinine ratio 34mg/g) over a median follow-up of 2.5 years, 1,482, 1,076 and 1,020 experienced MACE, HHF or cardiovascular death, and CKD progression, respectively. After (vs. before) CKD progression, there was an approximate 3-fold increase in incidence of MACE (30.2 vs. 93.8 per 1000-patient-years) and 4-fold increase in HHF or cardiovascular death (21.0 vs. 79.3 per 1000-patient-years). Conversely, the incidence of CKD progression was approximately 1.5-fold higher after (vs. before) nonfatal myocardial infarction or stroke (21.7 vs. 34.1 per 1000-patient-years) and 5-fold higher after HHF (21.2 vs. 108.2 per 1000-patient-years). These patterns were consistent in both treatment arms, with unadjusted incidence rates for clinical events appearing numerically lower in canagliflozin compared to placebo-treated participants (Figure 1). Of all non-fatal cardio-kidney outcomes, HHF and doubling of serum creatine or kidney failure conferred the highest risk of death (Figure 2).

Conclusion

Atherosclerotic and heart failure risk increases substantially after CKD progression. CKD progression was accelerated after cardiovascular events, particularly HHF. Treatment with canagliflozin was associated with lower event rates before and after a serious cardio-kidney outcome, suggesting continued use of canagliflozin may be beneficial even after cardiovascular events and CKD progression.Figure 1.Figure 2.