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A new study pits weight loss medications against each other. One was significantly more effective, says the drug manufacturer

Posted on by Taylor Reeves
A new study pits weight loss medications against each other. One was significantly more effective, says the drug manufacturer

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In a new head-to-head study, drugmaker Eli Lilly said Wednesday that patients who took its obesity drug Zepbound lost significantly more weight than those given Wegovy from rival Novo Nordisk.

Eli Lilly said users of Zepbound, which contains the antidiabetic drug tirzepatide, lost 47 percent more pounds than those given the other drug, semaglutide.

After 72 weeks, those who received weekly Zepbound injections lost 20.2 percent of their body weight, or just over 50 pounds, while Wegovy users lost 13.7 percent, or more than 33 pounds.

About 31 percent of people who took Zepbound lost at least a quarter of their body weight, while Wegovy users lost only 16.1 percent.

The logo of drug manufacturer Eli Lilly can be seen on one of the company's buildings in San Diego, California, in September 2020. The drugmaker said a clinical trial showed that patients who took the obesity drug Zepbound lost more weight than those given the competing product

The logo of drug manufacturer Eli Lilly is seen on one of the company’s buildings in San Diego, California, in September 2020. The drugmaker said a clinical trial showed that patients who took the obesity drug Zepbound lost more weight than those given the competing product (REUTERS/Mike Blake/File photo)

“Given the increased interest in anti-obesity medications, we conducted this study to help healthcare providers and patients make informed decisions about treatment choices,” said Dr. Leonard Glass, senior vice president of global medical affairs at Lilly Cardiometabolic Health, in a statement.

“We are pleased that today’s results demonstrated Zepbound’s superior weight loss, helping patients achieve 47 percent greater relative weight loss compared to Wegovy,” he continued. “Zepbound is in a class of its own as the only FDA-approved dual GIP and GLP-1 receptor agonist anti-obesity drug, and it is changing the way millions of people manage this chronic disease .”

An injection pen of Zepbound, Eli Lilly's weight-loss drug, is seen next to boxes of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy earlier this year. Novo Nordisk said it would wait until full data was available before responding to the study

An injection pen of Zepbound, Eli Lilly’s weight-loss drug, is seen next to boxes of Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy earlier this year. Novo Nordisk said it would wait until full data is available before responding to the study (REUTERS/Hollie Adams/Brendan McDermid/Combination/File Photo)

Novo Nordisk did not immediately respond The Independents Please comment, but said Reuters it would wait for the complete data.

The randomized clinical trial, which divided participants into groups to compare medications, involved 751 U.S. adult participants who were obese or overweight and had at least one other condition affecting their health, such as high blood pressure, Sleep apnea, cardiovascular diseases and the metabolic disorder dyslipidemia. They didn’t have diabetes.

In November 2023, injection pens and boxes with the weight loss medication Wegovy from Novo Nordisk can be seen. The FDA approved a new indication for the use of Wegovy earlier this year

In November 2023, injection pens and boxes with the weight loss medication Wegovy from Novo Nordisk can be seen. The FDA approved a new indication for the use of Wegovy earlier this year (REUTERS/Victoria Klesty/Illustration//File photo)

After the results of the process were published, Reuters reported that Eli Lilly shares rose slightly in premarket trading.

Eli Lilly said it will continue to evaluate the study’s results, publish them in a peer-reviewed journal and present them at a conference next year. Previous research from both companies found that the drugs helped people lose weight but did not pit the two drugs against each other.

Both drugs are different versions of the diabetes drugs Mounjaro and Ozempic, manufactured by Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk, respectively.

The news comes as both companies have increased production. Zepbound brought Eli Lilly $1.3 billion in revenue in the third quarter of this year.

Zepbound has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration for chronic weight management in adults with obesity. The government earlier this year approved a new indication for the use of Wegovy to reduce the risk of cardiovascular deaths, heart attacks and strokes in adults with cardiovascular disease who are either overweight or obese.

With reporting by The Associated Press

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