Efficacy and safety of semaglutide in glycemic control, body weight management, lipid profiles and other biomarkers among obese type 2 diabetes patients initiated or switched to semaglutide from other GLP-1 receptor agonists

PURPOSE: Evidence of the efficacy and safety of semaglutide among patients with type 2 diabetes who were initiated on or were switched to semaglutide from other GLP-1 RAs remains limited. The objective of this study was to investigate the short-term effects of switching to semaglutide from other GLP-1 RAs. METHODS: This retrospective cohort study evaluated patients with type 2 diabetes who were initiated on or were switched to semaglutide due to poor diabetes control with other GLP-1 RAs or other medications, or obesity. HbA1c, body weight, serum creatinine, serum uric acid, parameters of lipid metabolism, and parameters of liver function were measured before and 6 months after administration of semaglutide. RESULTS: A total of 50 patients were registered in the study. After switching to semaglutide (n = 43), HbA1c and body weight significantly decreased (p < 0.01, p < 0.01), respectively. The same findings were observed in semaglutide-naïve patients (p = 0.04, p < 0.02) (n = 7). Serum uric acid, total cholesterol, triglycerides, and urinary albumin-creatinine ratio decreased significantly as well (p = 0.04, p = 0.04, p = 0.02, p = 0.04), whereas serum creatinine did not change significantly (p = 0.51). CONCLUSIONS: Semaglutide showed excellent efficacy, even in patients switched from other GLP-1 RAs. Semaglutide appears to be a promising agent for blood glucose and body weight control in obese type 2 diabetes mellitus patients and could be more potent in treating type 2 diabetes than existing GLP-1 RAs.