Objective To investigate the clinical effect of dapagliflozin combined with linagliptin in the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus with early diabetic nephropathy.Methods A total of 76 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus complicated with early diabetic nephropathy admitted to Xinhui District People's Hospital from April 2021 to April 2023 were selected as the study objects and divided into two groups according to different treatment methods.The ob-servation group(39 cases)was treated with dapagliflozin combined with linagliptin,and the control group(37 cases)was treated with gliclazide sustained-release tablets+metformin hydrochloride sustained-release tablets.After 3 months of treatment,fasting plasma glucose,glycated hemoglobin A1c,serum creatinine,24-hour urine microalbumin,glomerular filtration rate and incidence of adverse reactions were compared between the two groups.Results After treatment,the fasting plasma glucose and glycated hemoglobin A1c levels in the two groups were lower than those be-fore treatment,and the differences were statistically significant(both P<0.05).After treatment,the fasting plasma glucose level in the control group was lower than that in the observation group,and the difference was statistically sig-nificant(P<0.05).There were no significant differences in 24-hour urinary microalbumin,serum creatinine and glo-merular filtration rate in the control group before and after treatment(all P>0.05).In the observation group,24-hour urinary microalbumin after treatment was lower than that before treatment,serum creatinine was lower than that before treatment,and glomerular filtration rate was higher than that before treatment,the differences were statistically signifi-cant(all P<0.05).No serious adverse reactions occurred in the two groups.Conclusion Dapagliflozin combined with linagliptin in the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus complicated with early diabetic nephropathy can not only con-trol blood glucose well,but also reduce urinary protein and improve renal function.