Semaglutide leads to larger reductions in heart failure-related symptoms and physical limitations among patients with obesity-related heart failure with preserved ejection fraction and type 2 diabetes, according to a study published online April 6 in the New England Journal of Medicine.
The medication includes brand name drugs Ozempic and Wegovy.
Mikhail N. Kosiborod, MD, a doctor from Saint Luke’s Mid America Heart Institute in Kansas City, Missouri, and colleagues randomly assigned 616 patients who had heart failure with preserved ejection fraction, a body mass index of 30 kg/m2 or more, and type 2 diabetes to receive semaglutide or placebo once a week for 52 weeks. The change from baseline in the Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire clinical summary score (KCCQ-CSS) and change in body weight were the primary end points.
The researchers found that the mean change in KCCQ-CSS was 13.7 and 6.4 points with semaglutide and placebo, respectively, and the corresponding mean percentage changes in body weight were −9.8% and −3.4%. For the confirmatory secondary end points, including the estimated between-group difference in change in six-minute walk distance and estimated treatment ratio for change in C-reactive protein level, the results favored semaglutide over placebo. Serious adverse events were reported in 17.7% and 28.8% of those in the semaglutide and placebo groups, respectively.
“Once-weekly semaglutide at a dose of 2.4 mg led to larger reductions in heart failure-related symptoms and physical limitations and greater weight loss than placebo at 52 weeks,” the authors woite.
Several authors disclosed ties to biopharmaceutical companies, including Novo Nordisk, which manufactures semaglutide and funded the study.
