To print: Select File and then Print from your browser's menu --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Title: NAASO: Xenical (Orlistat) Produces Rapid/Sustained Weight Loss URL: http://www.pslgroup.com/dg/208442.htm Doctor's Guide October 9, 2001
QUEBEC CITY, QC -- October 9, 2001 -- The weight loss medication Xenical (orlistat) helps overweight and obese people lose weight rapidly and is associated with rapid improvements in cardiovascular risk factors according to preliminary results of new research being presented at the North American Association for the Study of Obesity (NAASO) meeting in Québec City, Canada (1). A second presentation showed Xenical helps maintain weight loss for up to two years (2).
In an ongoing study, conducted by Professor Hermann Toplak from the Karl-Franzens-Universität in Graz, Austria, men and women with a body mass index (BMI) of 30-43 kg/m2 were randomised to treatment with Xenical plus diet (either 500kcal or 1000kcal/day deficit).
Of the 430 people who have participated in the study, 83 percent achieved clinically meaningful weight loss of greater than or equal to 5 percent of their body weight in the first 12 weeks of treatment - an amount of weight loss shown to clinically improve the health and well-being of overweight people (1,3). The average weight loss achieved by these patients after 12 weeks was 8 kg (or 7 percent of their body weight).
This weight loss was also associated with rapid improvements in cardiovascular risk factors in the first month of treatment. Reductions were seen in mean diastolic and systolic blood pressure (by 1.3 and 2.6 mmHg, respectively) after the first four weeks of treatment, with further improvements after 12 weeks (to a reduction of 3.0 and 4.3 mmHg respectively).
Further results from the first 12 weeks of the study showed:
· The greatest weight loss was seen in the first four weeks of treatment (4.1kg lost) followed by patients losing a further 2 kg every four weeks to week 12.
· BMI was reduced by 2.9kg/m2 on average
· Waist circumference was reduced by 6.3cm on average. Excess fat around the waist is associated with insulin resistance, high blood sugar, high cholesterol levels and high blood pressure.
"This study shows the significant benefits of rapid and continuous weight loss in the first 12 weeks of treatment with Xenical. Not only are there associated health advantages, but patients may also improve their motivation to lose weight and experience greater satisfaction with treatment," Professor Toplak said.
"One of the biggest problems with weight loss programs is that patients drop out because they do not experience early improvements in body shape or well-being. Rapid weight loss with Xenical means patients are more likely to experience these changes and consequently comply with treatment and succeed long-term on a weight management program."
A second presentation at NAASO also confirms that Xenical is successful in maintaining weight loss over a two-year period (2). The data presented by Professor Aila Rissanen, Helsinki University Hospital in Finland, demonstrate that in a group of patients who responded to treatment with Xenical:
· Weight loss was 10.4kg after two years (10.6 percent)
· Total cholesterol was reduced by 9 percent -- (LDL decreased by 10 percent, HDL increased by 9 percent, Triglycerides decreased by 14 percent)
· Reductions were seen in mean diastolic and systolic blood pressure (by 4.6 and 9.4 mmHg, respectively).
These studies show that Xenical helps people not only lose weight rapidly, but that it helps maintain weight loss and its associated health benefits for up to two years.
References:
1. Toplak H, Sharma AM, Van Gaal L. "Rapid weight loss with orlistat plus diet after 12 weeks of treatment". Poster presented at NAASO, Québec City, 2001.
2. Rissanen A, Rössner S, Chen KW. "Effect of weight loss with orlistat on cardiovascular disease risk prediction in high-risk obese adults". Poster presented at NAASO, Québec City, 2001.
3. Goldstein DJ. International Journal of Obesity (1992). 16:397-415.
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