The results of a new clinical trial conducted at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center demonstrates that a commonly prescribed weight-loss drug known as liraglutide successfully targets fat can damage your heart.
The study’s findings were published in ‘The Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology’.
In adults who are overweight or obese and have a high risk of cardiovascular disease, once-daily liraglutide in combination with lifestyle interventions significantly reduced two types of fat previously associated with cardiovascular risk: visceral fat and ectopic fat.
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Within the abdominal cavity, visceral fat is stored around vital internal organs such as the liver, pancreas, and intestines. Ectopic fat is stored in tissues that normally contain very little fat, including the liver, skeletal muscle, heart, and pancreas.
“Our study used the latest imaging technology to evaluate 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 had obesity. These results show the potential of liraglutide treatment for significantly lowering the risk of chronic disease in this population,” says Parag Joshi, M.D., preventive cardiologist, Assistant Professor of Cardiology, and senior author of the study.
Over the course of 40 weeks, the 185 study participants received a once-daily injection of liraglutide. Liraglutide had a twofold greater effect on fat reduction in abdominal tissues and a sixfold greater effect on fat reduction in the liver than on overall body weight.
The treatment effect was consistent across race/ethnicity and BMI categories, as well as among those with and without prediabetes at baseline. Liraglutide also significantly decreased fasting blood glucose and inflammation in this non-diabetic population, the majority of whom had normal blood sugar levels at baseline.
In a 2016 study led by UTSW investigators, the Leader trial found that those treated with liraglutide had a lower rate of first-time death from cardiovascular causes, nonfatal myocardial infarction, or nonfatal stroke than those treated with placebo.
“Our findings help add a possible mechanism for why there is a benefit of liraglutide on cardiovascular outcomes while also showing its benefits in people without diabetes,” adds Dr Joshi.
According to the researchers, obesity affects roughly one in every four adults and one in every five adolescents, posing a significant risk of cardiovascular disease and death.
“Excess visceral fat and ectopic (e.g., liver) fat are central to the development of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. It remains challenging to identify those at highest risk, in order to offer them treatment in addition to lifestyle changes such as diet and exercise,” explains Dr Joshi.
Novo Nordisk funded the study through an investigator-initiated grant.
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Other UT Southwestern researchers who contributed to the study include Colby R. Ayers, Bienka Lewis, Robert Oslica, Susan Rodder, and Ambarish Pandey.
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