Comparative effectiveness of once-weekly glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists with regard to 6-month glycaemic control and weight outcomes in patients with type 2 diabetes.

A retrospective cohort study was conducted in patients with type 2 diabetes in an electronic medical record database to compare real-world, 6-month glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) and weight outcomes for exenatide once weekly with those for dulaglutide and albiglutide. The study included 2465 patients: exenatide once weekly, n = 2133; dulaglutide, n = 201; and albiglutide, n = 131. The overall mean (standard deviation [s.d.]) age was 60 (11) years and 54% were men; neither differed among the comparison groups. The mean (s.d.) baseline HbA1c was similar in the exenatide once-weekly (8.3 [1.7]%) and dulaglutide groups (8.5 [1.5]%; P = .165), but higher in the albiglutide group (8.7 [1.7]%; P < .001). The overall mean (s.d.) HbA1c change was -0.5 (1.5)% (P < .001) and this did not differ among the comparison groups in either adjusted or unadjusted analyses. The mean (s.d.) weight change was -1.4 (4.7) kg for exenatide once weekly and -1.6 (3.7) kg for albiglutide (P = .579), but was greater for dulaglutide, at -2.7 (5.7) kg (P = .001). Outcomes were similar in subsets of insulin-naive patients with baseline HbA1c ≥7.0% or ≥9.0%. All agents significantly reduced HbA1c at 6 months, with no significant differences among agents or according to baseline HbA1c in insulin-naive subgroups.