Photo courtesy of STOCK

By Knowridge

A class of medicines commonly used for diabetes and kidney disease may offer meaningful benefits even to people in their eighties.

A new analysis linked these drugs to fewer deaths and serious kidney problems among older adults with chronic kidney disease.

The medicines, called SGLT2 inhibitors, help the kidneys remove excess sugar through urine. They have also become important treatments for some people with heart failure or kidney disease, regardless of whether they have diabetes.

Researchers examined electronic  health records for 10,076 adults aged at least 80 who had chronic kidney disease. They compared outcomes associated with starting an SGLT2 inhibitor over a two-year follow-up period.

People who started treatment had an 18% lower risk of death from any cause and a 22% lower risk of major adverse kidney events. These results suggest that advanced age alone may not eliminate potential benefits.

However, the study also uncovered reasons for caution.
Treatment was associated with higher risks of some specific cardiac events, including heart attacks and acute heart failure, as well as acute kidney injury.

There was no statistically significant reduction in major cardiovascular events overall.
That mixed picture matters because a medicine can benefit one organ or outcome while carrying risks for others.

For another kidney-care approach under investigation, read about experimental antibody treatment for chronic kidney disease.

Chronic kidney disease gradually reduces the kidneys’ ability to filter waste and maintain the body’s fluid balance.
It becomes more common with age, when other health conditions and medicines can complicate treatment decisions.

People aged 80 and older are often underrepresented in large randomized  drug trials. Researchers therefore have less direct evidence about how well treatments work in patients who may have several illnesses or frailty.

The new analysis helps address that gap by examining real-world care. But electronic health records cannot eliminate every difference between patients who begin treatment and those who do not.

For example, a person’s underlying health, medical history or clinician’s prescribing decisions might influence both treatment choice and later outcomes. Such factors make it difficult to prove that the drug itself caused the observed differences.

The results should be interpreted as changes in risk across groups, not predictions for a particular person.

The analysis did not establish which patients were most likely to experience side effects, and the balance of benefits and harms may differ substantially among older adults. That uncertainty is especially relevant when several medical conditions are present.

The findings were presented at ASN Kidney Week 2026, rather than described as results of a completed peer-reviewed journal article.
They should therefore be understood as conference research awaiting further scrutiny.