Results from the EMPEROR-Preserved phase 3 trial have demonstrated that empagliflozin, which is sold as Jardiance by Boehringer Ingelheim and Eli Lilly, showed a “significant” 21% relative risk reduction in the composite primary endpoint of cardiovascular death or hospitalisation for heart failure in adults with heart failure with preserved ejection fraction.
Empagliflozin also reduced the relative risk of first and recurrent hospitalisations for heart failure by 27% and significantly slowed kidney function decline.
Results from the phase 3 EMPEROR-Preserved trial were presented on 27 August 2021 at the European Society of Cardiology Congress and published in The New England Journal of Medicine.
“There are currently no clinically proven treatments we can offer people living with HFpEF that can have such a positive impact on their condition or reduce their chances of being admitted to hospital for heart failure,” said Iain Squire, professor of Cardiovascular Medicine at the University of Leicester, and Lead Investigator for EMPEROR-Preserved in the UK.
“Data from the EMPEROR-Preserved trial firmly establishes the potential for a new treatment for HFpEF patients in the UK and Ireland. The primary endpoint demonstrated benefit for patients with ejection fraction above 40% and was consistent across further subgroups, including men and women, as well as those with and without diabetes, which underlines empagliflozin’s potential for improvement in patients’ quality of life and outcomes.”
The heart failure market is becoming increasingly competitive, with Jardiance’s positive results in the EMPEROR-Reduced trial competing with AstraZeneca’s heart failure drug Farxiga, which scored an FDA fast-track designation in September 2020.