New anti-obesity drug twice as effective as current drugs

Results of a trial of a new anti-obesity drug have shown that it is twice as effective as currently available anti-obesity drugs.

Professor Arne Astrup and colleagues at the University of Copenhagen enrolled 203 obese patients weighing just over 100kg, on average, for their study. Participants followed a limited-energy diet and were randomly assigned to take either a placebo or 0.25 mg, 0.5 mg, or 1.0 mg of the triple monoamine reuptake inhibitor tesofensine once a day for 24 weeks.

Mean weight loss amongst participants assigned to tesofensine 0.25mg, 0.5mg, and 1.0mg was 6.7kg, 11.3kg, and 12.8kg respectively. In comparison, mean weight loss in those assigned to the placebo group was just 2.2.kg.

The weight loss achieved for those receiving 0.5 mg and 1.0 mg of tesofensine is approximately twice that achievable with sibutramine (Meridia). However, the 1.0 mg dose was associated with a rise in blood pressure. The researchers say that the 0.5 mg dose is the most promising dose because it produced almost the same weight loss as the 1.0 mg dose without raising blood pressure.

News release: New promising obesity drug may have huge potential. University of Copenhagen Website. October 23rd 2008.