Glucagon-like peptide-1 analogues in monogenic syndromic obesity: Real-world data from a large cohort of Alström syndrome patients

AIM: To examine the real-world efficacy of glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs) in monogenic obesity in patients with Alström syndrome (ALMS).

METHODS: We screened 72 UK adult patients with ALMS and offered treatment to 34 patients meeting one of the following criteria: body mass index of 25 kg/m2 or higher, insulin resistance, suboptimal glycaemic control on antihyperglycaemic medications or non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

RESULTS: In total, 30 patients, with a mean age of 31 ± 11 years and a male to-female ratio of 2:1, completed 6 months of treatment with GLP-1 RAs either in the form of semaglutide or exenatide. On average, treatment with GLP-1 RAs reduced body weight by 5.4 ± 1.7 (95% confidence interval [CI] 3.6-7) kg and HbA1c by 12 ± 3.3 (95% CI 8.7-15.3) mmol/mol, equating to 6% weight loss (P < .01) and 1.1% absolute reduction in HbA1c (P < .01). Significant improvements were also observed in serum total cholesterol, triglycerides, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and alanine aminotransferase. The improvement of metabolic variables in our cohort of monogenic syndromic obesity was comparable with data for polygenic obesity, irrespective of weight loss.

CONCLUSIONS: Data from our centre highlight the non-inferiority of GLP-1 RAs in monogenic syndromic obesity to the available GLP-1 RA-use data in polygenic obesity, therefore, these agents can be considered as a treatment option in patients with ALMS, as well as other forms of monogenic obesity.