Endocrinol Metab.  2021 Jun;36(3):647-660. 10.3803/EnM.2020.934.

Efficacy and Safety of the New Appetite Suppressant, Liraglutide: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

Affiliations
  • 1Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Hallym University College of Medicine, Chuncheon, Korea
  • 2Department of Biomedical Science and Engineering, Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology, Gwangju, Korea
  • 3Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Department of Internal Medicine, Hanyang University Guri Hospital, Hanyang University College of Medicine, Guri, Korea

Abstract

Background
Obesity is a chronic disease associated with metabolic diseases such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Since the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved liraglutide as an anti-obesity drug for nondiabetic patients in 2014, it has been widely used for weight control in overweight and obese people. This study aimed to systematically analyze the effects of liraglutide on body weight and other cardiometabolic parameters.
Methods
We investigated articles from PubMed, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Library to search randomized clinical trials that examined body weight changes with liraglutide treatment.
Results
We included 31 studies with 8,060 participants for this meta-analysis. The mean difference (MD) between the liraglutide group and the placebo group was −4.19 kg (95% confidence interval [CI], −4.84 to −3.55), with a −4.16% change from the baseline (95% CI, −4.90 to −3.43). Liraglutide treatment correlated with a significantly reduced body mass index (MD: −1.55; 95% CI, −1.76 to −1.34) and waist circumference (MD: −3.11 cm; 95% CI, −3.59 to −2.62) and significantly decreased blood pressure (systolic blood pressure, MD: −2.85 mm Hg; 95% CI, −3.36 to −2.35; diastolic blood pressure, MD: −0.66 mm Hg; 95% CI, −1.02 to −0.30), glycated hemoglobin (MD: −0.40%; 95% CI, −0.49 to −0.31), and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (MD: –2.91 mg/dL; 95% CI, −5.28 to −0.53; MD: −0.87% change from baseline; 95% CI, −1.17 to −0.56).
Conclusion
Liraglutide is effective for weight control and can be a promising drug for cardiovascular protection in overweight and obese people.

Keyword

Liraglutide; Glucagon-like peptide 1; Obesity; Metabolic syndrome; Meta-analysis

Figure

  • Fig. 1 Schema of the search strategy.

  • Fig. 2 Forest plots summarizing the effect of liraglutide on change of anthropometric data from baseline compared to placebo group. (A) Weight change (standard mean difference), (B) body mass index, (C) waist circumference (cm). CI, confidence interval.

  • Fig. 3 Forest plots summarizing the effect of liraglutide on change of cardiometabolic parameters from baseline compared to placebo group. (A) Systolic blood pressure (mm Hg), (B) diastolic blood pressure (mm Hg), (C) glycated hemoglobin (%), (D) low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (mg/dL). CI, confidence interval.


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