Adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) receiving empagliflozin experienced lower rates of venous thromboembolism (VTE), pulmonary embolism (PE), and deep vein thrombosis (DVT) than those treated with dapagliflozin in a large global analysis presented in the AACE Annual Meeting 2026 Abstracts. Cardiovascular outcomes, however, remained similar between the two sodium–glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitor (SGLT2i) therapies.

The target-trial emulation used de-identified data from the TriNetX global research network, which includes more than 140 healthcare institutions worldwide. A total of 483,316 adults with T2DM prescribed empagliflozin or dapagliflozin were initially identified, while patients receiving baseline anticoagulation therapy were excluded. After 1:1 propensity-score matching for demographics, comorbidities, and concomitant medications, each treatment cohort included 155,282 patients with balanced baseline characteristics.

Compared with dapagliflozin, empagliflozin was associated with a lower risk of composite VTE events (HR, 0.88; 95% CI, 0.81-0.95; P=.014). The reduction was consistent across both PE (HR, 0.87; 95% CI, 0.77-0.98; P=.025) and DVT outcomes (HR, 0.89; 95% CI, 0.81-0.98; P=.017).
Despite the differences in thromboembolic outcomes, rates of major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE), ischemic stroke, myocardial infarction (MI), and cardiac arrest did not differ significantly between treatment groups.

The findings suggest potential agent-specific differences in thromboembolic risk among SGLT2 inhibitors in adults with T2DM.