The placebo response of injectable GLP‐1 receptor agonists vs. oral DPP‐4 inhibitors and SGLT‐2 inhibitors: a systematic review and meta‐analysis

Weight loss of -0.67 kg was observed with placebo GLP-1 receptor agonist treatment.

• Placebo GLP-1ra treatment resulted in a weight decrease of -0.67 kg, while placebo DPP-4i and placebo SGLT-2i resulted in -0.31 kg and -0.48 kg, respectively.
• The change in HbA1c levels with placebo treatment was minimal, with changes of -0.23%, 0.10%, and -0.13% for GLP-1ra, DPP-4i, and SGLT-2i, respectively.
• Adverse events occurred frequently in placebo groups, often resembling those of the active comparator drugs, leading to dropout rates of 2.0-2.7%.
• Weight loss with placebo was strongly correlated with the active comparator drug, with correlation coefficients ranging from 0.40 to 0.78.
• The response to placebo treatment was linked to the type of active comparator, suggesting that expectations may influence treatment efficacy in type 2 diabetes.

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