COIOS
Healthcare today Item new peer-reviewed

Combined GLP-1 and SGLT2 use was linked to lower mortality after AF ablation, not less AF

In propensity-matched US health records for 2018 to 2024, atrial fibrillation recurrence after catheter ablation was similar whether patients took a GLP-1 receptor agonist, an SGLT2 inhibitor or both, while all-cause mortality was 40% to 46% lower with the combination, on small numbers of deaths.

Using the TriNetX records network, adults who underwent catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation between 2018 and 2024 were grouped by prior use of GLP-1 receptor agonists, SGLT2 inhibitors or both, and matched on propensity score. Arrhythmia recurrence after the three-month blanking period did not differ in any of the three comparisons (hazard ratios 1.01 to 1.13). All-cause mortality was lower with the combination than with either drug alone (HR 0.54, 95% CI 0.34 to 0.87 against GLP-1 alone, and HR 0.60, 95% CI 0.39 to 0.93 against SGLT2 alone), on small numbers of deaths and with wide intervals.

Why it is interesting: A mortality difference appears in routine records where the arrhythmia outcome does not, and it rests on small numbers of deaths in an observational comparison.

Source
Heart Rhythm, 17 September 2026
DOI
10.1016/j.hrthm.2026.09.018
Type
Peer-reviewed article
Design
Retrospective propensity-matched cohort in the TriNetX federated records network, 2018-2024; matched pairs of 952-1,393 adults undergoing catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation
Verdict
New finding
Driver
Cardiovascular disease
Driver
Obesity, diabetes and the GLP-1 drugs