Semaglutide: CVD benefit math
Real‑world registry analysis suggests semaglutide could prevent major cardiovascular events with a number‑needed‑to‑treat of 49 and an estimated 5‑year major cardiac event rate of 10.7% among eligible adults. (patientcareonline.com)
The analysis was published as a research letter in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology by Malene K. Hansen and colleagues using the Western Denmark Heart Registry. (europepmc.org) The investigators screened 34,405 patients aged ≥45 with a first myocardial infarction from 2010–2021 in that registry to assess real‑world applicability. (patientcareonline.com) Applying the SELECT trial inclusion rules to the cohort identified that 31% of those post‑MI patients—10,769 individuals—met eligibility for semaglutide treatment. (patientcareonline.com) Baseline descriptors for the SELECT‑eligible subgroup were a mean BMI of 29 kg/m2, median age 64 years, 32% current smokers, and 53% with hypertension. (patientcareonline.com) To translate trial efficacy into expected population impact the authors used observed 5‑year cumulative incidence estimates adjusted for competing non‑cardiovascular death and then applied the relative‑risk reduction reported in the randomized SELECT trial. (patientcareonline.com) The SELECT trial that provided the efficacy estimate randomized 17,604 adults and reported a hazard ratio of 0.80 (20% relative risk reduction) for the primary three‑point MACE outcome with semaglutide, with mean follow‑up of about 39.8 months. (nejm.org) The authors framed the registry approach as evidence that a substantial share of contemporary post‑MI patients in a European setting meet trial criteria, a finding they flagged as informative for clinicians and regulators considering implementation. (tctmd.com)
