Common Weight Loss Drug Successfully Targets Fat In Obese Adults At High Cardiovascular Risk

Researchers at UT Southwestern have announced positive results from a clinical trial of a commonly prescribed weight loss drug called liraglutide. In overweight or obese adults associated with high cardiovascular risk, once daily liraglutide in combination with lifestyle interventions significantly reduced two types of fat that have been associated with a risk to heart health: fat visceral and ectopic fat.

“Our study used the latest imaging technology to assess different fat components in the body. The main finding was a significant decrease in visceral fat in patients without diabetes but who were overweight or obese. These results show the potential of treatment with liraglutide to significantly lower the risk of chronic disease in this population, ”said Parag Joshi, MD, preventive cardiologist, assistant professor of cardiology and lead author of the study published in The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology.

Visceral fat is stored in the abdominal cavity around important internal organs, such as the liver, pancreas, and intestines. Ectopic fat is stored in tissues that normally contain small amounts of fat, such as the liver, skeletal muscles, heart, and pancreas.

All 185 study participants received a daily injection of liraglutide for 40 weeks of treatment. The relative fat-reducing effects of liraglutide were twice as strong in abdominal tissue and six times as strong in the liver than those seen on overall body weight. The treatment effect was consistent across all race / ethnicity and BMI categories, and among those with or without baseline prediabetes. Liraglutide also reduced fasting blood sugar and inflammation in this non-diabetes test population, the majority of whom had normal blood sugar at baseline.

In a 2016 study by researchers at UTSW called the Leader trial, the first-occurrence rate of cardiovascular death, non-fatal myocardial infarction, or non-fatal stroke in patients with type 2 diabetes was lower in those treated with liraglutide than with placebo. “Our results help add a possible mechanism as to why liraglutide has an advantage on cardiovascular outcomes while showing its benefits in people without diabetes,” said Dr. Joshi.

According to researchers, obesity affects about 1 in 4 adults and 1 in 5 young people, with a significant risk of cardiovascular disease and mortality.

Excess visceral fat and ectopic fat (eg, the liver) are central to the development of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. It remains difficult to identify those most at risk, in order to offer them treatment in addition to lifestyle changes such as diet and exercise. “

Parag Joshi, MD, preventive cardiologist