FDA Approves Wegovy GLP-1 Weight Loss Daily Drug
Wegovy’s daily pill form will soon be available to consumers after the FDA approves the drug.
Eli Lilly announced on May 21 that its experimental weight loss shot Ritartide led to dramatic weight loss in a late-stage study of obese patients.
Lilly said people given three different doses of the next-generation weight loss drug achieved weight loss between 19% and 28%. Results for some people in this study were comparable to weight loss surgery.
Lilly reported the results in a news release on Thursday, so the findings have not been peer-reviewed or reported in a scientific journal. Lilly has not yet applied for Food and Drug Administration approval, but could do so this year.
If approved, the drug would join a growing market for weight-loss drugs, including Lilly’s existing anti-obesity drug Zepbound and weight-loss drug Foundayo. Novo Nordisk sells the drug Wegovy, which is available as an injectable once-daily pill.
Dr. Lilly reported results with letaltortide suggesting more dramatic weight loss than other available drugs. Those who took the 9 mg dose lost an average of 64 pounds, or nearly 26% of their body weight. Those who took the higher dose of 12 mg lost 70 pounds, or more than 28 percent of their body weight.
Those who took the lower dose of 4 mg of letaltortide lost an average of 47 pounds, or about 19% of their body weight.
Nearly two out of three study participants who took 12 mg over 80 weeks lost enough weight to fall below a measure of obesity based on height and weight.
Almost half of the people who took the 12mg dose version of the drug for 80 weeks lost an average of more than 30% of their body weight, a result comparable to weight loss surgery.
The most common side effects among study participants included nausea, constipation, vomiting, and upper respiratory tract infections.
Retatortide works differently than existing drugs because it contains GIP, GLP-1, and glucagon triple hormone receptor agonists. Several other existing drugs, commonly called GLP-1, mimic the effects of glucagon-like peptide-1, a hormone that regulates metabolism.
