In brief
Weight reduction improves outcomes in people who have both obesity and type 2 diabetes, and this trial measured how much tirzepatide delivers in that group. Adults with a body-mass index of 27 or more and HbA1c between 7 and 10 percent were randomised to weekly tirzepatide at 10 or 15 milligrams or placebo for 72 weeks, with percentage weight change and the share losing at least 5 percent as co-primary endpoints. Weight fell 12.8 percent on 10 milligrams and 14.7 percent on 15 against 3.2 percent on placebo, and 79 to 83 percent of tirzepatide patients reached the 5 percent threshold against 32 percent. Nausea, diarrhoea and vomiting were the most frequent adverse events, mostly mild to moderate, with under 5 percent stopping treatment because of them. Serious adverse events occurred in 7 percent; two deaths in the 10 mg group were judged unrelated to treatment. Funded by Eli Lilly.
Study design
SURMOUNT-2: phase-3, double-blind, placebo-controlled, 72-week trial in 938 adults with obesity and type 2 diabetes across seven countries.
What it does not show
A sponsor-funded trial of the pharmaceutical product in a population with diabetes. The weight-loss figures are for that population and are smaller than those reported in people without diabetes.
A clinical trial tests a pharmaceutical form of a compound, in a defined patient group, under medical supervision, with a defined endpoint. None of that transfers to a research-grade vial, and this page does not suggest it does.
Where this paper is cited
- Tirzepatide — SURMOUNT-2, adults with obesity and type 2 diabetes, 72 weeks: −12.8% (10 mg) and −14.7% (15 mg) body weight against −3.2% on placebo.
Other papers cited for Tirzepatide
- Study in humans Tirzepatide versus Semaglutide Once Weekly in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Frías et al. (2021), N Engl J Med
- Study in humans LY3298176, a novel dual GIP and GLP-1 receptor agonist for the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus: From discovery to clinical proof of concept Coskun et al. (2018), Mol Metab
Further reading
- Research library: every paper cited on this site, by compound and by study type.
- GLP-1 family comparison
- How to read a certificate of analysis
- Lyophilised peptide storage and stability
How this page was made: the citation was retrieved from PubMed by PMID and checked against the title on the product page; the summary was written from the paper's abstract and reports only what the abstract reports. Read the paper itself before relying on any figure here.