Beneficial effect for once-daily subcutaneous injection, together with lifestyle counseling
THURSDAY, July 2, 2015 (HealthDay News) — A once-daily dose of 3.0 mg liraglutide, injected subcutaneously, is associated with greater reduction in body weight than placebo, according to a study published in the July 2 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
Xavier Pi-Sunyer, M.D., from Columbia University in New York City, and colleagues conducted a 56-week trial involving 3,731 patients without type 2 diabetes (mean body mass index, 38.3 ± 6.4 kg/m²). Patients were randomized in a 2:1 ratio to once-daily subcutaneous injections of liraglutide (2,487 patients) or placebo (1,244 patients); all participants received lifestyle modification counseling.
The researchers found that patients in the liraglutide and placebo groups had lost a mean of 8.4 ± 7.3 kg and 2.8 ± 6.5 kg of body weight, respectively, at week 56 (P = 0.001). Overall, 63.2 and 27.1 percent of the liraglutide and placebo groups, respectively, lost at least 5 percent of their body weight (P < 0.001), and 33.1 and 10.6 percent, respectively, lost more than 10 percent (P < 0.001). Mild or moderate nausea and diarrhea were the most frequently reported adverse events with liraglutide. Serious events occurred in 6.2 and 5.0 percent of patients in the liraglutide and placebo groups, respectively.
“In this study, 3.0 mg of liraglutide, as an adjunct to diet and exercise, was associated with reduced body weight and improved metabolic control,” the authors write.
Several authors disclosed financial ties to the pharmaceutical and weight loss industries; the study was partially funded by Novo Nordisk, the manufacturer of liraglutide.
Copyright © 2015 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
