Liraglutide Timeline: Week by Week, What Changes and When
SCALE Obesity and Prediabetes ran 56 weeks. By the end, people on liraglutide 3.0 mg daily had lost 7.4% of their body weight on average, against 3% on placebo. Side effects are most common in the first weeks and after each dose increase.
- Average loss, top dose
- 7.4%
- On placebo
- 3%
- Trial length
- 56 weeks
- Trial
- SCALE Obesity and Prediabetes
Saxenda in brief
The half-life is about 13 hours, so half is gone by 13 h; after five half-lives, or 2.7 d, about 3% is left.
In SCALE Obesity and Prediabetes, 56 weeks, body weight loss reached 7.4%, compared with 3% on placebo.
Sources: FDA label (DailyMed).
Liraglutide timeline: the numbers first
| Trial | Dose group | Average weight lost | Placebo or comparison | Weeks | Who was in it |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SCALE Obesity and Prediabetes | Liraglutide 3.0 mg daily | 7.4% | 3% | 56 | Adults who had obesity or overweight and no type 2 diabetes |
Source: SCALE Obesity and Prediabetes (FDA label (DailyMed)).
What the average works out to in pounds
That 7.4% trial average was applied to three different starting weights. This is arithmetic rather than a forecast for any one person: some people lose more, others less.
| Starting weight | Average loss on liraglutide 3.0 mg daily | Average loss on placebo |
|---|---|---|
| 180 lb | about 13 lb | about 5 lb |
| 220 lb | about 16 lb | about 7 lb |
| 260 lb | about 19 lb | about 8 lb |
Sources: FDA label (DailyMed).
Following the weeks one by one
- In the first weeks, stomach side effects show up most often while the dose is low and going up. After each dose increase, they often return for a few days.
- Week 56 marked the end of SCALE Obesity and Prediabetes, the trial in which that average loss was measured.
Sources: health.clevelandclinic.org, PubMed.