Summary of Semaglutide Turns the Scales on Teen Obesity:
Semaglutide is effective in treating obesity in adolescents, with 45% of those treated with the drug in a trial managing to lose enough weight to drop below the obesity cutoff and 74% experiencing at least one BMI category shift. The trial involved 201 adolescents with high BMIs who received either a placebo or weekly semaglutide injections alongside counseling for 68 weeks. The FDA approved the drug for chronic weight management in adults with at least one weight-related condition in June 2021.
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Semaglutide Proves Effective in Treating Adolescent Obesity: Nearly Half of the Participants Dropped Below Obesity Cutoff
Obesity is a significant public health concern globally, with 39% of adults and 18% of children and adolescents classified as overweight or obese, according to the World Health Organization. The situation is particularly dire in the United States, where approximately 17% of adolescents between 12 and 19 are classified as obese.
A secondary analysis of the STEP TEENS trial, presented at the European Congress on Obesity in 2023, found that semaglutide effectively treats obesity in adolescents. The study involved 201 adolescents with high BMIs who were randomized into groups receiving either a placebo or weekly semaglutide injections alongside lifestyle counseling for 68 weeks.
Semaglutide is a glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist that helps to regulate blood sugar levels in the body. The FDA already approves it for use in adults with obesity or overweight with at least one weight-related condition, such as high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, or high cholesterol.
Significant Weight Loss was Achieved with Semaglutide
This secondary analysis showed that semaglutide effectively treats adolescent obesity, with 45% of the liraglutide-treated participants losing enough weight to drop below the obesity cutoff, and 74% moved down at least one BMI category after 68 weeks. The proportion of participants who improved the BMI category from baseline to week 68 was assessed using on-treatment data.
BMI categories, based on Centers for Disease Control and Prevention BMI charts, were: average weight (BMI ≥5th to <85th percentile); overweight (BMI ≥85th to <95th percentile); and obesity class I (OCI; BMI ≥95th percentile). Severe obesity class II (OCII) and class III (OCIII) are based on a percentage above the 95th percentile cutoff for obesity – OCII is defined as ≥20% above this cutoff, and OCIII is defined as ≥40% above this cutoff.
At randomization, the mean body weight of the participants was 107.5 kg, and the mean BMI was 37.0 kg/m² (OCII). By week 68, 45% of participants in the semaglutide arm experienced a reduction in BMI below the clinical cutoff point for obesity (i.e., reached average weight or overweight) versus 12% of participants in the placebo arm.
Semaglutide Reduces Severe Obesity in Adolescents
The treatment with semaglutide significantly reduced the proportion of participants with the most severe degree of obesity (OCIII) from 37% to 14% after 68 weeks. The authors concluded, “Once-weekly semaglutide was associated with clinically meaningful improvements in BMI categories versus PBO across all BMI classes in adolescents with obesity.”
In a practical sense, semaglutide reduced weight to a level below what is defined as clinical obesity in nearly 50% of the teens in our trial, which is historically unprecedented with treatments other than bariatric surgery.
Clinicians need more evidence to determine the positive effects of semaglutide’s long-term use in adolescents. The study shows how vital innovative and effective treatments are in tackling adolescent obesity. The results provide hope; further research could have significant implications for treating obesity in adolescents.
