Table 1.
Demographic and clinical characteristics of patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus in the VHA health care system from 2019 to 2020 by prescription of SGLT2i and GLP1-RA agents
| Characteristics | None n = 1,011,176 | SGLT2i n = 128,523 | GLP1-RA n = 92,496 | GLP1-RA and SGLT2i n = 34,315 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sociodemographic | ||||
| Age, mean (SD), years | 68 (11) | 65 (10) | 68 (11) | 64 (9) |
| Female sex | 40,037 (4) | 4,750 (4) | 5,312 (6) | 1,685 (5) |
| Race | ||||
| White | 710,980 (70) | 95,959 (75) | 69,733 (75) | 26,050 (76) |
| Black | 204,954 (20) | 20,618 (16) | 14,371 (16) | 5,017 (15) |
| Asian or Asian Pacific Islander | 20,615 (2) | 2,921 (2) | 1,975 (2) | 849 (2) |
| American Indian or Alaska Native | 8,462 (1) | 1,117 (1) | 852 (1) | 304 (1) |
| Ethnicity | ||||
| Hispanic/Latino | 71,956 (7) | 9,317 (7) | 6,043 (7) | 2,287 (7) |
| Service-connected disability >50% | 422,886 (42) | 61,186 (48) | 45,876 (50) | 17,405 (51) |
| Diabetes service connection | 241,043 (24) | 38,252 (30) | 28,775 (31) | 10,769 (31) |
| Lowest ZIP Code median income quartile (<$44,818) | 255,797 (25) | 28,098 (22) | 19,595 (21) | 7,033 (20) |
| Highest social deprivation index quartile (score >73) | 24,6047 (24) | 28,459 (22) | 20,539 (22) | 7,304 (21) |
| Rural or highly rural ZIP Code | 377,858 (37) | 47,649 (37) | 34,746 (38) | 12,724 (37) |
| Lifestyle | ||||
| Unhealthy alcohol use | 79,504 (8) | 7,648 (6) | 4,207 (5) | 1,618 (5) |
| Current smoking | 155,768 (15) | 17,635 (14) | 11,080 (12) | 3,936 (11) |
| Diabetes management and control | ||||
| Hemoglobin A1c ≤7% (53 mmol/mol) | 572,691 (57) | 32,602 (25) | 25,900 (28) | 7,842 (23) |
| Diabetes medications other than SGLT2i or GLP1-RA | ||||
| None | 235,455 (23) | 3,602 (3) | 2,154 (2) | 424 (1) |
| One | 409,144 (40) | 23,582 (18) | 18,454 (20) | 5,106 (15) |
| Two | 248,427 (25) | 55,501 (43) | 41,486 (45) | 15,671 (46) |
| Three or more | 118,150 (12) | 45,838 (36) | 30,402 (33) | 13,114 (38) |
| Endocrinology visit | 105,801 (10) | 34,961 (27) | 32,544 (35) | 13,409 (39) |
| Clinical characteristics | ||||
| Hypertension | 985,389 (97) | 126,414 (98) | 91,256 (99) | 33,881 (99) |
| BMI ≥30 kg/m2 | 549,224 (54) | 82,354 (64) | 66,313 (72) | 24,531 (71) |
| ASCVD | 317,094 (31) | 55,128 (43) | 36,581 (40) | 14,761 (43) |
| Heart failure | 97,496 (10) | 18,514 (14) | 14,191 (15) | 5,264 (15) |
| CKD | 345,322 (34) | 50,337 (39) | 43,648 (47) | 14,627 (43) |
| Mental health diagnosis | 218,381 (22) | 29,984 (23) | 23,413 (25) | 8,707 (25) |
| COVID-19 diagnosis | 26,629 (3) | 4,636 (4) | 3,506 (4) | 1,374 (4) |
Data are presented as n (%) unless otherwise specified.