Randomized controlled trial
SCALE Maintenance: liraglutide after diet-induced weight loss
After losing 6.0% on the diet, weight fell by a further 6.2% with liraglutide and 0.2% with placebo between randomization and week 56 (estimated difference of −6.1 percentage points; 95% CI, −7.5 to −4.6).
Wadden TA et al. Weight maintenance and additional weight loss with liraglutide after low-calorie-diet-induced weight loss: The SCALE Maintenance randomized study. International Journal of Obesity, 2013. DOI: 10.1038/ijo.2013.120
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- Alex Gonzalez
- Last updated
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Key facts
- Drug
- liraglutide
- Design
- Randomized controlled trial
- Participants
- 422
- Duration
- 56 weeks
- Funding
- Novo Nordisk
- Registry
- NCT00781937
- Population
- 422 adults with a BMI of 30 or more (or 27 or more with comorbidities) who lost at least 5% of their weight on a low-calorie diet before randomization (6.0% on average).
- Primary outcome
- Three primary outcomes from randomization to week 56, with liraglutide 3.0 mg daily versus placebo and diet and exercise counseling in both groups: percentage change in weight, proportion maintaining the initial loss of at least 5% and proportion losing at least another 5%.
What it found
After losing 6.0% on the diet, weight fell by a further 6.2% with liraglutide and 0.2% with placebo between randomization and week 56 (estimated difference of −6.1 percentage points; 95% CI, −7.5 to −4.6). Of those on liraglutide, 81.4% maintained the initial loss of at least 5%, compared with 48.9% on placebo (OR 4.8; 95% CI, 3.0 to 7.7), and 50.5% versus 21.8% lost at least another 5% (OR 3.9; 95% CI, 2.4 to 6.1). There were small but statistically significant improvements in several cardiometabolic risk factors. Digestive disorders were more frequent with liraglutide, mostly transient and mild or moderate.
Limitations
Sponsored by Novo Nordisk, according to the trial registry. It only included people who had already lost at least 5% on the diet, which selects people with a good initial response. It studied daily liraglutide, not the newer weekly drugs. The abstract does not report what happens when treatment is stopped.
What it means for you
After weight loss on a diet, liraglutide helped people keep that weight off and lose a little more over 56 weeks, compared with placebo. It is a trial of a daily drug from more than a decade ago. The idea of using a treatment to maintain weight loss, not just to achieve it, is something you can discuss with your doctor.
Further reading
- GLP-1 drug pages
- All study summaries
- Original paper: doi.org/10.1038/ijo.2013.120
Sources
The original paper and the records consulted for this summary, with the date they were accessed.
- International Journal of Obesity.Wadden TA, et al. Weight maintenance and additional weight loss with liraglutide after low-calorie-diet-induced weight loss: the SCALE Maintenance randomized study. Int J Obes (Lond). 2013;37(11):1443-1451.accessed .
- National Library of Medicine (PubMed).PubMed record PMID 23812094 (abstract).accessed .
- ClinicalTrials.gov (National Library of Medicine).ClinicalTrials.gov NCT00781937: SCALE - Maintenance (sponsor and enrolment).accessed .