A big, long-term trial of the weight-loss medicine Wegovy (semaglutide) discovered that folks tended to shed some pounds over the primary 65 weeks on the drug—about one yr and three months—however then hit a plateau or “set level.” However that early weight reduction was usually maintained for as much as 4 years whereas folks continued taking the weekly injections.
The findings, revealed Monday in Nature Drugs, come from a contemporary evaluation of information from the SELECT trial, which was designed to have a look at the drug’s results on cardiovascular well being. The trial—a multicenter, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled path—particularly enrolled folks with current heart problems who additionally had obese or weight problems, however didn’t have diabetes. In all, the trial included 17,604 folks from 41 international locations. Seventy-two p.c of them have been male, 84 p.c have been white, and the common age was about 62 years previous.
Final yr, researchers revealed the trial’s major outcomes, which confirmed that semaglutide lowered contributors’ threat of coronary heart assault, stroke, and cardiovascular-related deaths by 20 p.c over the span of slightly over three years.
Within the new evaluation with but longer follow-up of the identical contributors, researchers centered on their weight-loss trajectories and endpoints. Folks taking semaglutide noticed their weight decline steadily over the primary 65 weeks of remedy, then plateauing. Nonetheless, the preliminary weight reduction was sustained by means of 208 weeks (4 years) of follow-up. On common, folks taking the drug misplaced 10.2 p.c of their weight, whereas the placebo group misplaced simply 1.5 p.c. That quantities to an 8.7 p.c remedy distinction.
That weight reduction is lower than what has been seen in different trials of semaglutide. In 2021, researchers revealed a research in The New England Journal of Drugs exhibiting folks on the drug misplaced 14.9 p.c of their weight, whereas these on a placebo misplaced 2.4 p.c—a remedy distinction of 12.5 p.c.
Researchers behind the SELECT trial, which was funded by Wegovy’s maker, Novo Nordisk, speculate that the trials’ completely different designs might clarify the distinction in weight reduction. The sooner trial was designed to check weight reduction in individuals who have been particularly making an attempt to shed some pounds and who additionally tended to be youthful than these within the SELECT trial. Along with semaglutide remedy, the older trial included different way of life interventions to assist in weight reduction. The SELECT trial contributors, then again, weren’t particularly looking for to shed some pounds and did not get any extra way of life interventions for weight reduction.
Nonetheless, researchers noticed clinically significant weight reduction throughout each sexes, all physique sizes, and geographic areas. Of the individuals who obtained semaglutide, 52.4 p.c moved right into a decrease class of physique mass index in the course of the trial, in contrast with simply 15.7 p.c of the placebo group. And within the semaglutide group, the proportion of individuals with weight problems fell 71 p.c to 43.3 p.c, whereas the placebo group noticed a drop of simply 71.9 p.c to 67.9 p.c.
The research has limitations, most notably that it largely enrolled older white males. Thus, the weight-loss findings will not be generalizable. Nonetheless, the authors conclude that the research helps broad use of semaglutide in folks with heart problems who even have obese or weight problems. The looming query researchers subsequent need to face is simply how lengthy folks might want to keep on the efficient however at present dear drug.
