• DavisTimothy M ETME0000-0003-0749-7411Medical School, University of Western Australia, and Fremantle Hospital, Fremantle, Western Australia, Australia., Peter G Colman, Charlotte Hespe, Sarah E Heywood, and Michael d'Emden.
• Medical School, University of Western Australia, and Fremantle Hospital, Fremantle, Western Australia, Australia.
• Intern Med J. 2023 Oct 1; 53 (10): 179618051796-1805.

BackgroundType 2 diabetes (T2D) is a well-recognised cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factor, and recent guidelines for the management of T2D include consideration of CVD risk.AimTo assess whether contemporary clinical management of Australians with T2D is in accord with recent national and international guidelines.MethodsThis Australia-specific analysis of the CAPTURE study, a non-interventional, cross-sectional study included adults diagnosed with T2D ≥180 days prior to providing informed consent and visiting primary or specialist care. Main outcome measures were the use of blood glucose-lowering medications (BGLMs), BGLMs with proven cardiovascular benefits and other CVD medications, stratified by CVD status and care setting.ResultsOf 824 Australian participants in the CAPTURE sample, 332 (40.3%) had CVD. Oral BGLMs were used by 83.9% of all participants, most commonly metformin (76.0%), dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors (28.8%), sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitors (SGLT2is; 21.8%) and sulfonylureas (21.7%). Insulin was used by 29.2% of participants. BGLMs with proven CV benefit were used by 22.6%; glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs) were less commonly used than SGLT2is in all CVD groups, but these drug classes were more often prescribed in specialist than primary care (SGLT2is 25.4 vs 20.7%, GLP-1 RAs 3.2 vs 0.8% respectively). Use of non-BGLMs for CVD risk reduction appeared consistent with guidelines.ConclusionsUse of BGLMs with CVD benefits appears low in Australia, irrespective of CVD status. This likely reflects the delay in translation of clinical evidence into contemporary care and prescribing restrictions.© 2022 The Authors. Internal Medicine Journal published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd on behalf of Royal Australasian College of Physicians.

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