(HealthDay News) -- For overweight or obese patients with type 2 diabetes, subcutaneous liraglutide (3.0 mg) results in more weight loss than placebo over 56 weeks, according to a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Melanie J. Davis, M.D., from the University of Leicester in the United Kingdom, and colleagues examined the efficacy and safety of liraglutide versus placebo in overweight or obese adults with type 2 diabetes. A total of 846 adults from 126 sites were randomized to once-daily subcutaneous liraglutide 3.0 mg (423 participants), liraglutide 1.8 mg (211 participants), or placebo (212 participants), all as an adjunct to dietary deficit and increased physical activity.

The researchers found that weight loss was 6.0, 4.7, and 2.0%, respectively, for liraglutide 3.0 mg, liraglutide 1.8 mg, and placebo (P = 0.001 for both). Weight loss of 5% or more occurred in 54.3, 40.4, and 21.4%, respectively, of the liraglutide 3.0 mg, liraglutide 1.8 mg, and placebo groups (P < 0.001 for both); the corresponding values for weight loss of more than 10% were 25.2, 15.9, and 6.7% (P < 0.001 for liraglutide 3.0 mg versus placebo and P = 0.006 for liraglutide 1.8 mg versus placebo).

"Among overweight and obese participants with type 2 diabetes, use of subcutaneous liraglutide (3.0 mg) daily, compared with placebo, resulted in weight loss over 56 weeks," the authors write.

Several authors disclosed financial ties to pharmaceutical companies, including Novo Nordisk, which funded the study. Liraglutide is a Novo Nordisk proprietary compound.

Source

1. Davies, MJ; Bergenstal, R; Bode, B; et al. JAMA. 2015;314(7):687-699; doi:10.1001/jama.2015.9676.

...