The extension part of the trial demonstrated that treatment withNovo Nordisk’s Saxenda (liraglutide 3 mg) in combination with a reduced-calorie diet and increased physical activity resulted in significant and sustained weight loss over the three-year span, compared with placebo (reduced-calorie diet and increased physical activity alone).
At week 160, those randomised to treatment with Saxenda achieved an average body weight loss of 6.1% from baseline, compared with 1.9% for placebo treatment; 49.6% of adults treated with Saxenda achieved ≥5% weight loss, compared to 23.7% of adults on placebo. In addition, 24.8% lost more than 10% of their body weight when treated with Saxenda compared to 9.9% with placebo. Moreover, 52.6% of adults who were treated with Saxenda completed the 160-week extension trial vs 45% of those in the placebo group.
In the extension, Saxenda delayed the onset of type 2 diabetes
In addition, the extension met its primary endpoint, demonstrating that ongoing treatment with Saxenda in combination with reduced-calorie diet and increased physical activity delayed the onset of type 2 diabetes, compared with placebo.
“Losing and maintaining weight loss can be very challenging for adults with obesity or who are overweight,” said Professor Carel le Roux, University College Dublin, Ireland, and SCALE clinical trial investigator. “These data are very important as they demonstrated the clinical value of Saxenda over a period of three years.”
Saxenda is a once-daily glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) analogue with 97% similarity to naturally occurring human GLP-1, a hormone that is released in response to food intake. Like human GLP-1, Saxenda regulates appetite by increasing feelings of fullness and satiety, while lowering feelings of hunger and prospective food consumption, thereby leading to reduced food intake. As with other GLP-1 receptor agonists, Saxenda stimulates insulin secretion and lowers glucagon secretion in a glucose-dependent manner. These effects can lead to a reduction of fasting and post-prandial blood glucose.
