Study wrapper · #451
Six-Month Real-World Effectiveness, Persistence and Safety of Low-to-Moderate Dose Tirzepatide in Adults With Obesity: A Multicentre Observational Study.
Editor's note
A multicenter retrospective observational study across 15 Greek endocrinology clinics following 260 adults with obesity who started low-to-moderate-dose tirzepatide; 208 (80%) completed six months. Median weight loss was substantial, 94.2% achieved >=5%, 77.9% >=10%, 47.1% >=15%, and about 20% >=20%, with weight loss independent of baseline BMI and greater in women. Discontinuation was 20%, most often during titration and frequently for goal achievement or cost; gastrointestinal events rarely stopped treatment. As real-world data this usefully complements trials by showing persistence and outcomes in routine practice. The caveats are design-based: single-arm, retrospective, no control group, and six months only, so it cannot isolate the drug's effect from concurrent care or speak to durability. The results are consistent with tirzepatide's established weight effects. Read as supportive real-world corroboration, not independent confirmation.
Plain-language abstract
This study looked at how tirzepatide performed in everyday clinical practice, rather than in a controlled trial. Across 15 hormone-specialist clinics in Greece, doctors reviewed records of 260 adults with obesity who started low-to-moderate doses of tirzepatide; 208 of them (80%) stayed on it for six months. Weight loss was substantial: nearly all lost at least 5% of their body weight, about 78% lost at least 10%, and around 20% lost at least 20%. The amount of weight lost did not depend on how heavy people were to begin with, and women lost a slightly greater percentage than men. About one in five people stopped the drug, most often during the early dose-increase phase, and usually because they reached their goal, found it too costly, or did not respond; stomach side effects rarely caused people to quit. Because there was no comparison group and follow-up was six months, the study supports but cannot by itself prove tirzepatide's effect or show whether the weight loss lasts.