Medication Survodutide on the Horizon Could Offer Impressive Weight Management Results
By Matthew Garza
Results from a recent clinical trial showed the new medication survodutide may be a useful treatment tool for weight loss. People with overweight or obesity on the highest dose in the trial saw around 15% weight loss.
Data from a recent phase 2 clinical trial of survodutide was presented at the ADA’s 83rd Scientific Sessions. This new medication from pharmaceutical companies Boehringer Ingelheim and Zealand Pharma is an injectable glucagon/GLP-1 receptor dual agonist. It is still in clinical trials and has not been approved by the FDA yet.
In the trial, servodutide was studied in people with overweight or obesity (who didn't have diabetes). Those randomly assigned to the highest dose saw an average of 14.9% body weight reduction.
The trial included 387 adults who were randomly assigned to a placebo and varying doses of survodutide (0.6 mg, 2.4 mg, 3.6 mg, or 4.8 mg). Over 20 weeks, the doses were increased until reaching their assigned treatment and maintained for an additional 26 weeks.
The researchers were most interested in seeing the change in weight at 46 weeks, as well as the percentage of participants who achieved 5%, 10%, or 15% weight loss.
At 46 weeks, the results showed the average reduction in body weight:
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Placebo (no treatment): 2.0%
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Survodutide 0.6 mg: 6.2%
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Survodutide 2.4 mg: 12.5%
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Survodutide 3.6 mg: 13.2%
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Survodutide 4.8 mg: 14.9%
At the 46-week mark, weight loss had not yet leveled off, suggesting even greater reductions may be seen with longer treatment. Additionally, in the group who tolerated being on the higher (3.6 or 4.8 mg) doses, around 40% saw weight loss greater than 20%.
As with other medications in the GLP-1 receptor agonist family, survodutide was shown to be safe and tolerable. However, a large number of participants (roughly 90%) did report side effects, which were mainly gastrointestinal issues like nausea or vomiting.
While roughly 25% of people had to discontinue survodutide because of the side effects, researchers suggested this may be due to how quickly the doses were ramped up during the trial. With a more gradual dose increase, adverse reactions may be reduced.
In another phase 2 clinical trial in people with type 2 diabetes, survodutide was shown to improve A1C by up to 1.88 percentage points after 16 weeks in the group receiving the highest dose (1.8 mg), injected twice a week.
The study was done in a group of participants without diabetes (primarily to study weight management benefits). Survodutide is also being studied to see its effects on non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), a type of liver disease.
