Anti-obesity drug also helps smokers avoid weight gain
Smokers and overweight patients with dyslipidaemia could benefit from a new drug being tested in clinical trials.
Rimonabant works by selectively blocking CB1 receptors in the endocannabinoid
system (thought to help maintain energy balance through regulation of
food intake and energy expentiture).
In overweight people, inhibition of CB1 is thought to result in weight
loss, reduced weight circumference and improved lipid and glucose metabolism.
This can also help people stop smoking without weight gain.
Results from two trials were presented this week at the American College of Cardiology meeting in New Orleans. Patients treated daily for one
year with 20mg rimonabant lost 8.6kg compared with 2.3kg for placebo.
Rimonabant also helped more people lose over 5 per cent of their body
weight (75 per cent vs 27.6 per cent, P<0.001).
The second trial involved 787 smokers treated for 10 weeks with rimonabant
(5mg or 25mg) or placebo. The drug helped more people give up smoking
without gaining weight. On average, treated smokers lost 0.3kg while
giving up. Those given placebo gained an average of 1.1kg (P<0.001) |
The
Pharmaceutical Journal