Data presented at the
Diabetes UK Annual Professional Congress in Glasgow show that the, human GLP-1 analogue, liraglutide is effective at reducing HbA1c in patients with type 2
diabetes and also significantly reduces body weight in study participants with type 2
diabetes compared to placebo 1, 2, 3. Novo Nordisk has made a marketing authorisation application to the European Medicines Agency (EMEA) in Europe.
The data analysis from the LEAD 2 and LEAD 5 phase III, 26-week studies, part of the LEAD™ (Liraglutide Effect and Action in
Diabetes) study programme evaluated the effect of once daily liraglutide, an incretin-based therapy, when combined with various oral antidiabetic therapies.
Key clinical findings presented at the congress:
Liraglutide reduces HbA1c1 Data analysis from the LEAD 2 and LEAD 5 studies examined the impact of baseline HbA1c on response to liraglutide. The results showed that treatment with liraglutide 1.8mg/day resulted in clinically meaningful reductions in HbA1c irrespective of baseline HbA1c levels and reductions increased with higher baseline HbA1c levels.
Liraglutide reduces body weight2 Data analysis from the LEAD 2 and LEAD 5 studies explored the impact of baseline BMI on response to liraglutide 1.8mg when combined with commonly used oral antidiabetic therapies. Results from both studies found that study participants in all BMI subgroups experienced
weight loss with liraglutide. The greatest decrease in body weight occurred in study participants with BMI ≥ 35kg/m2 (-4.4kg). In both studies, the control regimens (
glimepiride +
metformin in LEAD 2 and insulin glargine +
glimepiride +
metformin in LEAD 5) were associated with increases in body weight in all BMI subgroups, ranging from 0.4 to 2.2 kg.
Liraglutide reduces systolic blood pressure3 Type 2
Diabetes is associated with increased
blood pressure and therefore
cardiovascular disease. A decrease in 5.6mmHg systolic
blood pressure will decrease the risk of death from
cardiovascular disease by 18% in this group of patients. 9
Data analysis from LEAD 2 and LEAD 5 explored the impact of Liraglutide on
blood pressure. Results from both studies show a decrease in
blood pressure with Liraglutide. The greatest reduction occurred in LEAD 5 which demonstrated a mean decrease in systolic
blood pressure of 4mmHg with Liraglutide 1.8mg.
Liraglutide reduces visceral fat rather than lean tissue4 A sub-group analysis of study participants in LEAD 2 investigated the effect of liraglutide on body composition. At 26 weeks there was a statistically significantly greater reduction in central-body visceral fat with liraglutide (liraglutide +
metformin, 13-17% reduction from baseline) compared to the control group (
glimepiride +
metformin, 4…