Success for Saxenda (liraglutide 3 mg) in SCALE trial showing reduction of weight and comorbidities- Novo Nordisk

New data from the phase III SCALE Obesity and Prediabetes trial were presented at The Endocrine Society's 97th Annual Meeting (ENDO), showing that adults with obesity or who are overweight with comorbidities who had lost up to 5% of their body weight at 56 weeks (ie weight loss responders), demonstrated greater improvements across a range of efficacy outcomes with Saxenda (liraglutide 3 mg) treatment in combination with a reduced-calorie diet and increased physical activity, compared with those that had a weight loss of <5% (ie non-responders). In the SCALE Obesity and Prediabetes trial, 63.2% of adults achieved a clinically meaningful body weight reduction of at least 5% with Saxenda compared with 27.1% on placebo (p<0.0001). The average weight loss for responders on Saxenda treatment was 11.7% compared with 1.7% for non-responders. For placebo treatment, average weight loss in responders was 10.0% versus 0.1% weight gain in non-responders. Saxenda treatment was associated with a greater reduction in waist circumference in responders, compared with non-responders (11.0 cm vs 3.3 cm). In addition to weight loss, improvements across a number of secondary endpoints were also observed in the responder population (Saxenda and placebo). A greater improvement was seen in fasting plasma glucose (FPG) in Saxenda responders compared with placebo responders (-8.3 vs -2.8 mg/dl, respectively) as well as non-responders (-5.0 vs +1.1 mg/dl, respectively). In addition, treatment with Saxenda was associated with a greater reduction in systolic blood pressure (SBP) compared with placebo in both responders (-5.5 vs -3.4 mm Hg, respectively) and non-responders (-2.0 vs. -0.8 mm Hg, respectively). Improvements in physical health scores (as measured by the SF-36 questionnaire) were seen with Saxenda and placebo responders (+4.3 vs +4.1 points, respectively) compared with non-responders (+2.1 vs +1.3 points, respectively).

"These are important findings as they show that for adults with obesity or who are overweight with comorbidities, losing 5% to 10% of their body weight can help improve comorbidities, including fasting plasma glucose and blood pressure," said Dr Patrick O'Neil, Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the Medical University of South Carolina and SCALE clinical trial investigator.