BMJ

GLP-1 receptor agonists not tied to increased suicidality risk

March 5, 2025

GLP-1 receptor agonists aren't associated with an increased risk of suicidality compared with DPP-4 inhibitors or SGLT2 inhibitors in patients with T2DM.

Study details: This active comparator, new user cohort study utilized data from the U.K. Clinical Practice Research Datalink, linked to the Hospital Episodes Statistics Admitted Patient Care and Office for National Statistics Death Registration databases. The study included 2 cohorts of patients with T2DM who initiated GLP-1 receptor agonists, DPP-4 inhibitors, or SGLT2 inhibitors between 2007 and 2020, followed until March 2021.

Results: The study included 36,082 GLP-1 receptor agonist users and 234,028 DPP-4 inhibitor users in the first cohort, and 32,336 GLP-1 receptor agonist users and 96,212 SGLT2 inhibitor users in the second cohort. Initial crude analyses suggested an increased incidence of suicidality with GLP-1 receptor agonists compared with DPP-4 inhibitors (hazard ratio [HR], 2.08, 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.83 to 2.36) and SGLT2 inhibitors (HR, 1.60, 95% CI, 1.37 to 1.87). However, after adjusting for confounding factors, the HRs weren't significant.

Source:

Shapiro SB, et al. (2025, February 26). BMJ. Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists and risk of suicidality among patients with type 2 diabetes: active comparator, new user cohort study. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40010803/