GLPwatch

Relationship between body weight change and glycaemic control with tirzepatide treatment in people with type 2 diabetes: A post hoc assessment of the SURPASS clinical trial programme.

Diabetes Obes Metab · 2023

Last updated 2026-05-28

In a study of people with type 2 diabetes, most participants taking tirzepatide at doses of 5, 10, or 15 mg saw improvements in both blood sugar control and weight loss after 40 or 52 weeks. Between 87% and 97% of participants experienced weight loss alongside better blood sugar control, and a small but statistically significant link was found between the two improvements in some trials.

AI summary of the abstract below.

JournalDiabetes Obes Metab, 2023
Citations22
Relative citation ratio2.36
NIH percentile78
Molecules tirzepatide
Conditions studied Type 2 Diabetes, Obesity

Abstract

AIM: To assess the relationship between HbA1c and body weight reductions with tirzepatide treatment (5, 10 or 15 mg). MATERIALS AND METHODS: HbA1c and body weight data at 40 weeks (SURPASS-1, -2 and -5) and 52 weeks (SURPASS-3 and -4) were analysed by trial. RESULTS: Across the SURPASS clinical trials, HbA1c reductions from baseline were observed in 96%-99%, 98%-99% and 94%-99% of participants treated with tirzepatide 5, 10 and 15 mg, respectively. Moreover, 87%-94%, 88%-95% and 88%-97% of participants, respectively, experienced weight loss associated with HbA1c reductions. Statistically significant associations (correlation coefficients ranging from 0.1438 to 0.3130 across studies; P ≤ .038) between HbA1c and body weight changes were observed with tirzepatide in SURPASS-2, -3, -4 (all doses) and -5 (tirzepatide 5 mg only). CONCLUSIONS: In this post hoc analysis, consistent reductions in both HbA1c and body weight were observed in most participants treated with tirzepatide at doses of 5, 10 or 15 mg. A statistically significant but modest association between HbA1c and body weight change was observed in SURPASS-2, SURPASS-3 and SURPASS-4, suggesting that both weight-independent and weight-dependent mechanisms are responsible for the tirzepatide-induced improvement in glycaemic control.

Verbatim abstract via PubMed 37246796 ↗

Related research