Effects of Liraglutide, a Human Glucagon-like Peptide-1 Analogue, on Body Weight, Body Fat Area and Body Fat-related Markers in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

Abstract

Objective To evaluate the effects of six-month liraglutide treatment on body weight, visceral and subcutaneous fat and related markers in Japanese type 2 diabetic patients. Methods A total of 59 patients with type 2 diabetes were treated with liraglutide (0.3 mg/day for ! 1 week and then 0.6 mg/day for ! 1 week, gradually increasing the dose to 0.9 mg/day) for six months. Changes in body weight, body mass index (BMI), HbA1c, the fasting blood glucose level, visceral and subcutaneous fat areas, hepatic and renal CT values and the associated markers proinsulin, adiponectin and pentraxin (PTX) 3 were measured. Results The study included one treatment-naïve patient, 10 patients who were switched from oral antidiabetic drugs and 35 patients who were switched from insulin therapy. At six months after treatment, the preprandial blood glucose levels were higher (148.8±40.5 mg/dL) than the baseline values (130.8±36.7, p< 0.05); however, body weight, BMI and abdominal circumference were lower, and the liver/kidney CT ratio improved significantly from 1.64±0.44 at baseline to 1.78±0.42. An analysis of the patients who were not pretreated with insulin resistance ameliorators showed that six months of liraglutide treatment significantly decreased the subcutaneous but not visceral fat areas, significantly decreased the serum adiponectin levels and significantly increased the serum PTX3 levels. Conclusion In addition to its glucose-lowering effects, liraglutide exhibits weight loss promotion actions, reducing subcutaneous fat areas in particular. The weight and total fat area reduction properties of liraglutide are likely to be beneficial when this medication is used in combination with other oral antidiabetic drugs and insulin.

Effects of Insulin Glargine and Liraglutide Therapy on Liver Fat as Measured by Magnetic Resonance in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes: A Randomized Trial

“…Prior studies suggested that GLP-1 receptor agonists, such as liraglutide and exenatide, would improve liver steatosis in animal models (27,28), in human case series (29), and in prospective nonrandomized trials (30,31). However, in the setting of the randomized controlled trial Liraglutide Efficacy and Action in Diabetes (LEAD)-2 substudy, there was a nonsignificant trend toward a reduction in liver steatosis as assessed by computed tomography with the liver-tospleen attenuation ratio, but only for the 23 patients receiving higher doses (1.8 mg) of liraglutide (11,32).…”

Liraglutide reduces the body weight and waist circumference in Chinese overweight and obese type 2 diabetic patients

“…Liraglutide is effective in patients with maturity-onset diabetes of the young (MODY) 3, and produces lower hypoglycemic risk than glimepiride [9] . Moreover, liraglutide has also been used as an anti-obesity therapy [10] . In addition, liraglutide is currently applied in the treatment of other insulin resistance-related diseases.…”

Clinical Effectiveness of Liraglutide Across Body Mass Index in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes in the United States: A Retrospective Cohort Study

“…High body mass index (BMI) is an independent risk factor for cardiovascular diseases and all-cause mortality for people with T2D [12, 13]. High BMI, also involved in the pathogenesis of T2D, can complicate the treatment of T2D by altering lipid levels, increasing insulin resistance, and raising blood glucose levels [13].…”