Black and American Indian or Alaskan Native individuals have significantly lower rates of initiation of newer diabetes medication, according to a study in The Lancet Regional HealthAmericas. Investigators conducted a secondary analysis of the Look AHEAD (Action for Health in Diabetes) trial among 4,892 participants to examine the association of race/ ethnicity with initiation of newer diabetes medications, including glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonists, dipeptidyl peptidase 4 inhibitors, and sodium/glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitors. During a median follow-up of 8.3 years, 45.2% of participants initiated newer diabetes medications. There was an association between race/ ethnicity with newer diabetes medication initiation, with lower initiation among Black and American Indian or Alaskan Native participants, independent of socioeconomic factors. There was also an inverse association between yearly family income and initiation of newer diabetes medications (HR, 0.78) when comparing the lowest and highest income groups.
