A total of 132 participants, or 64.4%, achieved at least 5% weight loss after 6 months of anti-obesity medication treatment.
Phentermine was associated with the highest prevalence of achieving ≥5% weight loss compared to other medications, except for liraglutide.
Specific weight loss rates after 6 months were: 87.2% for phentermine, 67.7% for phentermine/topiramate, 58.1% for liraglutide, 35.3% for naltrexone/bupropion, 75% for lorcaserin, and 50% for orlistat.
Significant differences in body weight, body mass index, and body fat mass were observed among the different anti-obesity medication groups.
No significant changes were reported in waist circumference, skeletal muscle mass, percentage body fat, or visceral fat area across the groups.
The findings suggest that various can effectively induce weight loss without significant impacts on muscle mass.
Simplified
PURPOSE: (AOMs), along with lifestyle interventions, are effective means of inducing and maintaining weight loss in patients with obesity. Although the efficacy of AOMs has been reported, there have been no direct comparisons of these drugs. Therefore, in the present study, we aimed to compare the efficacy of all the AOMs available in Korea in a real-world setting.
PATIENTS AND METHODS: The body weight and composition of 205 adults treated with phentermine, phentermine/topiramate, liraglutide, naltrexone/bupropion, lorcaserin, or orlistat for at least 6 months were analyzed at 2 month intervals. The prevalence of the achievement of a ≥5% weight loss and the changes in body composition were compared between participants using each AOM at each visit.
RESULTS: A total of 132 (64.4%) participants achieved ≥5% weight loss within 6 months (prevalence of ≥5% weight loss after 6 months: phentermine, 87.2%; phentermine/topiramate, 67.7%; liraglutide, 58.1%; naltrexone/bupropion, 35.3%; lorcaserin, 75%; orlistat, 50%). At each visit, after adjustment for age, sex, and baseline body weight, phentermine use was associated with a significantly higher prevalence of ≥5% weight loss than the use of the other AOMs, except for liraglutide. There were significant differences in the body weight, body mass index and body fat mass among the AOM groups by visit (P for interaction <0.05), but not in their waist circumference, skeletal muscle mass, percentage body fat, or visceral fat area.
CONCLUSION: All the AOMs were effective at inducing and maintaining weight loss, in the absence of significant changes in muscle mass, over a 6 month period, and the short-term use of phentermine and the long-term use of phentermine/topiramate or liraglutide would be practical choices for the treatment of obesity. However, further, large-scale studies are necessary to confirm these findings.
Key numbers
132 of 205
Weight Loss Achievement Rate (≥5%)
Total participants achieving ≥5% weight loss after 6 months
62 of 205
Weight Loss Achievement Rate (≥10%)
Total participants achieving >10% weight loss after 6 months
87.2%
Prevalence of Weight Loss (Phentermine)
Percentage of phentermine users achieving ≥5% weight loss
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