Study finds diabetes drug tirzepatide reduces heart attack and stroke risk in high-risk patients

Aug 5, 2026

A real-world study published in The BMJ reveals that adding the diabetes and weight-loss drug tirzepatide (Mounjaro) to standard care for type 2 diabetes patients with heart disease reduces the risk of major adverse cardiovascular events by 32% and slashes heart attack risk by 33% compared to sitagliptin. Meanwhile, a separate 10-year Danish study published in The Lancet Regional Health – Europe emphasizes that long-term medication adherence is critical, showing that low adherence increases cardiovascular event rates by 27%.

Tirzepatide cardiovascular benefits

▪The BMJ study found that tirzepatide reduced infections requiring hospital admission, preventing one admission for every 48 patients, and prevented one death from any cause for every 122 patients treated.
▪A study published in August 2026 in The BMJ found that adding tirzepatide to standard care for type 2 diabetes patients with heart disease reduced their risk of major adverse cardiovascular events by 32% compared to sitagliptin.
▪In the BMJ study, patients receiving tirzepatide had a 33% lower risk of experiencing a heart attack compared to those taking sitagliptin, though no significant difference was found in stroke cases.

Real-world clinical practice evidence

▪Co-directors of the South Asian Cardio-Metabolic Program, Sourbha Dani and Sarju Ganatra, noted in a linked BMJ editorial that while the tirzepatide signal is compelling, it does not establish a mortality indication.
▪The BMJ study utilized clinical practice data from two United States health insurance claims databases spanning from May 2022 to May 2025 to evaluate real-world cardiovascular outcomes.

Medication adherence heart outcomes

▪The Danish cohort study found that younger adults under age 55 with low medication adherence faced a 73% higher rate of cardiovascular events compared to consistent users.
▪The Danish cohort study revealed that type 2 diabetes patients with low medication adherence had a 27% higher rate of major cardiovascular events and a 24% higher rate of stroke compared to consistent users.
▪A study published in The Lancet Regional Health – Europe tracked 79,510 newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes patients in Denmark over 10 years, finding that consistent medication adherence kept patients free of serious heart complications for over seven extra months.

Study methodology patient populations

▪The BMJ study analyzed 52,971 patients with type 2 diabetes, a body mass index of at least 25, and established heart disease, comparing 35,353 patients starting tirzepatide with 17,618 starting sitagliptin.
▪Researchers in the BMJ study selected sitagliptin as a neutral placebo proxy because multiple prior studies demonstrated that sitagliptin has no beneficial or harmful effect on cardiovascular outcomes.

Type 2 diabetes treatment

▪Tirzepatide, marketed as Mounjaro, is a GLP-1 receptor agonist administered via injection that is approved and used to treat type 2 diabetes and severe obesity.
▪A study from the University of Pennsylvania Health System linked GLP-1 receptor agonists, including semaglutide and tirzepatide, to an increased risk of clinically recorded hair loss.