Weight-loss drug reduces heart attack risk, regardless of weight lost, study finds | Medical research
The weight-loss drug semaglutide reduces the risk of heart attack or stroke, regardless of the number of pounds lost, according to the largest study of its kind.
However, according to research, decreasing waist circumference – a sign of less abdominal fat – was associated with better heart outcomes.
The findings, published in the Lancet, suggest that the drugs may have broader benefits for patients beyond weight loss and should therefore not be limited to the most obese patients.
Researchers set out to examine the additional benefits of semaglutide, which is the main ingredient in the weight loss drug Wegovy.
The selected trial, led by University College London (UCL), looked at whether or not people taking the drug suffered a “major adverse cardiac event”, including death from heart disease, heart attack or stroke.
They looked at data from 17,604 people aged 45 and over who were overweight or obese.
Half of the people in the study – which took place in 41 countries – received weekly injections of semaglutide. The other half received a dummy drug, called a placebo.
An earlier analysis of the data found that semaglutide reduced the risk of major adverse cardiac events by 20%. Researchers have now found that the benefit was apparent regardless of how much weight was lost while taking the drug.
The academics said the results suggest the drug could benefit the heart in several ways, rather than the protective effect achieved only through weight loss.
They found that even slightly overweight people, with a body mass index (BMI) of 27 – the average BMI score for British adults – enjoyed similar benefits to those with the highest BMI scores.
The benefits were also largely independent of the amount of weight lost during the first four months of treatment.
However, researchers noticed a difference between the reduction in waist circumference, as measured by waist circumference, and the benefits for the heart.
In the Lancet, they stated that “approximately 33% of the observed benefit in major adverse cardiovascular events was due to reduction in waist circumference.”
Lead author Professor John Deanfield, from the UCL Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences, said: “Abdominal fat is more dangerous to our cardiovascular health than overall weight and so it is not surprising to see a link between waist circumference reduction and cardiovascular benefits.
“However, this still leaves two-thirds of semaglutide’s cardiac benefits unexplained. These results reframe what we think this drug does.”
“It is labeled as a weight-loss vaccine, but its benefits for the heart are not directly related to the amount of weight lost. In fact, it is a drug that directly affects heart disease and other diseases related to aging.”
He added: “This work has implications for how semaglutide is used in clinical practice.
“You don’t need to lose a lot of weight and you don’t need a high BMI to experience cardiovascular benefit. If your goal is to reduce cardiovascular disease, limiting its use to a limited duration and for people with the highest BMIs doesn’t make sense.
“At the same time, the benefits must be weighed against the potential side effects. Research into side effects becomes particularly important given the wide range of people this and similar drugs could help.”
