Project Grant R03DK145927

The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases awarded Adventhealth Orlando $151,816 on September 1, 2026, under the Diabetes, Digestive, and Kidney Diseases Extramural Research program (CFDA 93.847) to conduct a real-world outcomes study of glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) medicines in type 1 diabetes patients.

The project will assess weight loss, kidney disease progression, and major adverse events in type 1 diabetes patients treated with cardioprotective GLP-1 medicines (liraglutide, semaglutide, dulaglutide, tirzepatide) compared to active comparators (phentermine and metformin). The study leverages the Epic Cosmos database, which includes over 943,000 patients with a type 1 diabetes diagnosis, and employs propensity score-based methods to account for non-random treatment selection bias. Research objectives include evaluation of clinically significant weight loss of 10 percent, composite kidney outcomes including urine albumin-to-creatinine ratio measures, and cardiovascular safety outcomes. The work addresses a knowledge gap regarding whether GLP-1 medicines prevent kidney disease progression, reduce cardiovascular disease, and avoid rare severe adverse events in the type 1 diabetes population, where excess cardiovascular and kidney disease risk and rising obesity prevalence remain significant concerns.

Performance occurs in Orlando, Florida, with a period of performance from September 1, 2026, through May 31, 2028.