August 20, 2024 – The weight reduction and diabetes drug tirzepatide, sold under the brand name Zepbound, was highly effective in reducing the danger of progression from prediabetes to the more serious condition type 2 diabetes, in response to initial study results released on Tuesday by drugmaker Eli Lilly .
Tirzepatide is sold under the brand name Zepbound for weight reduction and under the name Mounjaro for the treatment of diabetes. The drug works like other well-known diabetes and weight reduction medications reminiscent of Ozempic and Wegovy. Tirzepatide is referred to as a dual GLP-1/GIP receptor agonist, meaning it really works in two ways, mimicking hormones released within the gut that may affect appetite and calorie absorption. It can even affect insulin production.
These latest results come from a Phase III clinical trial of tirzepatide, which is often the most important phase of studying the consequences and safety of a drug. This latest evaluation, called the SURMOUNT-1 study, included 1,032 adults with prediabetes and obese or obese. The results were compared in individuals who took a placebo or one among three doses of tirzepatide (5 milligrams, 10 milligrams or 15 milligrams) given as a weekly injection for 176 weeks, greater than three years.
People who took tirzepatide had as much as 94% reduced risk of developing type 2 diabetes, Eli Lilly announced in a Press release.
The announcement was posted on Eli Lilly's website for investors and is an element of the principles that pharmaceutical corporations must follow regarding clinical trial information. These latest results might be presented on the Obesity Week 2024 The company said within the press release that it took place at a medical conference in November and was presented to a peer-reviewed journal.
The study results also showed a remarkable average weight reduction of 15 to 23% of body weight, depending on dosage, in comparison with a median weight reduction of 1 to 2% in individuals who took a placebo. After the 176-week treatment period, study participants were followed for a further 17 weeks during which they stopped taking the drug. They began to achieve weight again and there was a slight increase in progression to type 2 diabetes, the discharge said. At the top of the 17-week monitoring period, the danger reduction of developing type 2 diabetes fell by about 6 percentage points to 88%.
Previous results from the SURMOUNT-1 trial were published in 2022 in The New England Journal of Medicineshowed that individuals lost, on average, between 15% and 21% of their body weight after 72 weeks. This initial evaluation included greater than twice as many individuals as in recent results, which only included individuals with prediabetes.
More than one in three adults within the US have this PrediabetesThis is a condition wherein blood sugar levels are above normal, but not high enough to fulfill the standards for type 2 diabetes. Most individuals with prediabetes go on to develop the more serious condition type 2 diabetes. The press release didn't address whether taking tirzepatide is related to reversal of prediabetes in people.
Tirzepatide may cause digestive unwanted effects that typically range from mild to moderate, Eli Lilly reported, noting that the unwanted effects observed on this latest evaluation were much like those reported in 2022 and other clinical trials of the drug. The commonest unwanted effects were diarrhea, nausea, constipation and vomiting.