20 percent greater mortality benefit seen in obstructive sleep apnea population<\/p>\n<\/h3>\n
By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter<\/b>
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MONDAY, Oct. 20, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) prescribed glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs) have significantly lower one-year mortality, especially those also diagnosed with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), according to a study presented at CHEST 2025, the annual meeting of the American College of Chest Physicians, held from Oct. 19 to 22 in Chicago.<\/p>\n
Cosmo Fowler, M.D., from Emory University in Atlanta, and colleagues examined data from the TriNetX U.S. Collaborative Network to examine whether OSA modifies outcomes in patients with T2DM receiving GLP-1RAs. A total of 1,799,261 patients with T2DM who were prescribed metformin were identified and stratified into T2DM without OSA prescribed metformin without GLP-1 RAs (60.2 percent); T2DM without OSA prescribed metformin and GLP-1 RAs (20.1 percent); T2DM with OSA prescribed metformin without GLP-1 RAs (11.6 percent); and T2DM with OSA prescribed metformin and GLP-1 RAs (8.1 percent). The groups without GLP-1 RA prescriptions were compared to those with prescriptions.<\/p>\n
The researchers found that following propensity score matching, GLP-1 RA-prescribed groups had lower one-year mortality, both those without and with OSA (relative risks, 2.04 and 2.45, respectively). Between non-OSA and OSA cohorts, the ratio of relative risks was 1.20, indicating a 20 percent greater mortality benefit in the OSA population, with a significant Cochran-Mantel-Haenszel statistic.<\/p>\n
“This large-scale analysis suggests that OSA status may act as an effect modifier in the association between GLP-1 RA prescription and mortality,” Fowler said in a statement.<\/p>\n
Two authors disclosed ties to the biopharmaceutical industry.<\/p>\n