The pill version of Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy may be the best GLP-1 option for people looking to drop recently gained weight, according to an early analysis of real-world data.
Reviewing data on 3,011 patients with a prescription for oral Wegovy and a follow-up weight recorded within 180 days, researchers found that patients who had recently gained weight were far more likely to be super-responders – defined as losing more than 10% of their starting body weight during treatment.
Oral Wegovy was approved in the US in December of last year. None of the patients in the current study had previously used other GLP-1 products.
“It doesn’t matter if you’re a 30-year-old who recently in the last five years gained significant weight, or you’re a 60-year-old or a 90-year-old that in the last five years gained significant weight, you’re far more likely within months to reverse those five years of body weight gain” than if your weight gain trajectory extends further back into the past, said study leader Venky Soundararajan of data analytics firm nference.
Wegovy pill “super-responders” weighed less than non-responders at the start of treatment, averaging 207 pounds versus 224.21 pounds (94.1 kg versus 101.7 kg), according to a report posted online, opens new tab but not yet peer-reviewed.
The researchers also found that super-responders were more likely to have escalated to a dose above the 1.5-milligram starting dose by day 60.
In addition, as patients continued taking the pills, their blood pressure improved significantly, with reductions directly correlated with the amount of body weight loss.
The authors emphasize that their findings do not prove cause and effect. Rather, they say, their results should prompt more rigorous studies to test whether pre-treatment weight trajectory is truly a predictor of response.
