GLP-1s: Experts Recommend for Cardiovascular Care

BOSTON, Mass. – August 3, 2025

GLP-1s Show Remarkable Cardiovascular Benefits, Experts Urge Wider Adoption

Glucagon-like peptide-1 inhibitors are revolutionizing cardiovascular care, with experts stressing their consistent use in patients at risk for heart disease.

The final sessions of the ASPC 2025 Congress on CVD Prevention buzzed with talk of a groundbreaking drug class. Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) inhibitors are demonstrating significant benefits in reducing cardiovascular events, according to presenters. These findings suggest GLP-1s should become a staple in cardiology treatment plans.

GLP-1s should be used consistently in cardiology care according to experts.

Vinita Aroda, MD, director of diabetes clinical research at Harvard Medical School, traced the evolution of GLP-1s. She began with Exenatide BID in 2005, which offered modest weight loss adn blood glucose improvements. By 2019, oral semaglutide proved it could maintain efficacy. “Then came the combination tirzepatide,” Aroda noted, “which has opened up a new wave of another unfolding.” She highlighted that for the first time, over 50% of participants achieved an A1c below 5.7.

Recent studies confirm GLP-1s’ impact on cardiovascular health. A 2024 meta-analysis showed reduced odds of major adverse cardiac events and all-cause mortality compared to placebo. Unlike earlier findings that took about 12 years to show such differences, newer studies reveal a separation of outcomes as early as six months. “We’re starting to see an earlier separation,” Aroda observed, “that can ask the question of whether there’s something special about these agents.”

Tirzepatide and semaglutide have also demonstrated significant weight reduction and betterment in heart failure symptoms, particularly in patients with type 2 diabetes and heart failure with preserved ejection fraction. Aroda stressed that these benefits extend beyond purely cardiovascular outcomes, impacting overall health.

Clinician Guidance: When prescribing GLP-1s,Aroda advised focusing on the goals of reducing heart and kidney disease risk and optimizing long-term health. Educating patients about expectations, hydration, and incorporating muscle resistance training is crucial. “It isn’t about getting to the highest dose fast enough,” she concluded. “It’s understanding the patient in front of you, educating, escalating to an appropriate dose, acknowledging the potential effects, and modifying to the patient.”

Darren McGuire, MD, MHSc, a professor of medicine at University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, urged cardiologists to embrace these medications. Despite a decade of supporting data, U.S. ca

Source: “GLP-1s show Remarkable Cardiovascular Benefit in patients with type 2 diabetes and heart disease. News release. Lilly. July 31,2025. Accessed August 3, 2025.