Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 7, 2026
Incorporation of a Survivable Liver Biopsy Procedure in Mice to Assess Non-alcoholic Steatohepatitis NASH Resolution
Published on: April 16, 2019
A Randomized, Controlled Trial of 3.0 mg of Liraglutide in Weight Management
Xavier Pi-Sunyer1, Arne Astrup, Ken Fujioka
1From the Division of Endocrinology and Obesity Research Center, Columbia University, New York (X.P.-S.); Department of Nutrition, Exercise and Sports, University of Copenhagen, Frederiksberg (A.A.), and Novo Nordisk, Søborg (C.B.J.) - both in Denmark; Department of Nutrition and Metabolic Research, Division of Endocrinology, Scripps Clinic, La Jolla, CA (K.F.); Pennington Biomedical Research Center, Louisiana State University System, Baton Rouge (F.G.); Obesity and Metabolic Syndrome Unit, Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Hospital das Clínicas, University of São Paulo Medical School, São Paulo (A.H.); Clinique d'Endocrinologie et Nutrition, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire, Nantes, France (M.K.); Departments of Medicine and Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada (D.C.W.L.); Diabetes Complications Research Centre, Conway Institute, University College Dublin, Dublin (C.W.R.); Departamento Endocrinología, Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social, Cuidad Madero, Mexico (R.V.O.); and Department of Obesity and Endocrinology, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom (J.P.H.W.).
Background:
Obesity is a chronic disease with serious health consequences, but weight loss is difficult to maintain through lifestyle intervention alone. Liraglutide, a glucagon-like peptide-1 analogue, has been shown to have potential benefit for weight management at a once-daily dose of 3.0 mg, injected subcutaneously.
Methods:
We conducted a 56-week, double-blind trial involving 3731 patients who did not have type 2 diabetes and who had a body-mass index (BMI; the weight in kilograms divided by the square of the height in meters) of at least 30 or a BMI of at least 27 if they had treated or untreated dyslipidemia or hypertension. We randomly assigned patients in a 2:1 ratio to receive once-daily subcutaneous injections of liraglutide at a dose of 3.0 mg (2487 patients) or placebo (1244 patients); both groups received counseling on lifestyle modification. The coprimary end points were the change in body weight and the proportions of patients losing at least 5% and more than 10% of their initial body weight.
Results:
At baseline, the mean (±SD) age of the patients was 45.1±12.0 years, the mean weight was 106.2±21.4 kg, and the mean BMI was 38.3±6.4; a total of 78.5% of the patients were women and 61.2% had prediabetes. At week 56, patients in the liraglutide group had lost a mean of 8.4±7.3 kg of body weight, and those in the placebo group had lost a mean of 2.8±6.5 kg (a difference of -5.6 kg; 95% confidence interval, -6.0 to -5.1; P<0.001, with last-observation-carried-forward imputation). A total of 63.2% of the patients in the liraglutide group as compared with 27.1% in the placebo group lost at least 5% of their body weight (P<0.001), and 33.1% and 10.6%, respectively, lost more than 10% of their body weight (P<0.001). The most frequently reported adverse events with liraglutide were mild or moderate nausea and diarrhea. Serious events occurred in 6.2% of the patients in the liraglutide group and in 5.0% of the patients in the placebo group.
Conclusions:
In this study, 3.0 mg of liraglutide, as an adjunct to diet and exercise, was associated with reduced body weight and improved metabolic control. (Funded by Novo Nordisk; SCALE Obesity and Prediabetes NN8022-1839 ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT01272219.).
Related Concept Videos
01:24Glucagon-like Receptor Agonists
GLP-1, when administered in high doses intravenously, triggers insulin secretion, inhibits glucagon release, slows gastric emptying, reduces food intake, and restores normal insulin secretion. However, its rapid inactivation by...
01:21Drug Dosing: Obese Patients
01:30Inflammatory Bowel Disease III: Diagnostic Studies and Management I-Nutritional Therapy
Diagnostic studies
A colonoscopy is the definitive screening test, distinguishing ulcerative colitis from other colon diseases with similar symptoms. During a colonoscopy test, inflamed mucosa with exudate ulcerations can be observed, and biopsies are taken to determine the histologic characteristics of the...
01:06Oral Hypoglycemic Agents: Glinides
01:26Oral Hypoglycemic Agents: Biguanides and Glitazones
01:15Diabetes: Management and Pharmacotherapy
Insulin remains the cornerstone of treatment for most patients with type 1 and many...