Real-world use of submaximal doses of long-acting GLP-1 receptor agonist semaglutide in patients with obesity: a prospective observational study

Obesity is a global health problem with numerous metabolic and mechanical complications. In previous studies, a long-acting glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist (GLP-1 RA) semaglutide has been identified as one of the most promising medications for treating obesity. We carried out a prospective observational study investigating the effect of submaximal doses of semaglutide in 56 adult patients with obesity (mean age 49 ± 12 years, 42 female and 14 male). We evaluated the effects on body weight, waist circumference, height/waist ratio, and BMI during 3-month follow-up. 30 patients in our group also reached a 6-month follow-up. Our patients achieved a weight loss of 6.45 ± 0.31% (p < 0.01) in 3 months of semaglutide therapy, and in the subgroup of 30 patients where semaglutide was administered for 6 months, weight loss was 11.35 ± 0.47% (p < 0.01). Regarding waist circumference, patients achieved a 7 cm decrease in waist circumference in 3 months, and an additional 6 cm at 6 months, respectively (p < 0.01). The mean height/waist ratio decreased from 0.71 ± 0.08 to 0.67 ± 0.09 after 3 months of treatment (p < 0.01) and to 0.63 ± 0.09 (p < 0.01) after 6-month of semaglutide treatment. Mean BMI decreased from 40.3 ± 6.7 to 37.5 ± 6.83 kg/m 2 (p < 0.01) after 3 months of treatment and to 35.5 ± 7.73 kg/m 2 in the subgroup with 6 months of therapy (p < 0.01). Our study showed a significant decrease in body weight, waist circumference, height/waist ratio, and BMI in patients with obesity treated with submaximal doses of semaglutide.