Study Results
The study team has not published outcome measurements, participant flow, or safety data for this trial yet. Check back later for updates.
Basic Information
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RECRUITING
PHASE4
40 participants
INTERVENTIONAL
2024-05-02
2025-05-31
Brief Summary
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Following individual informed consent, all participants will undergo a series of basic cardiometabolic labs. They will then be initiated on liraglutide 0.6 mg administered subcutaneously, and this dose will be gradually increased over a period of 4 weeks to a dose of 3.0 mg daily. Alongside drug administration, participants will receive lifestyle counselling regarding diet and physical activity. Following completion of a 12-week "on treatment" period, liraglutide will be stopped and participants will be followed for an additional 12-weeks off treatment. Body weight, cardiometabolic risk parameters, and a suite of patient-reported outcomes regarding diet, physical activity, sleep, and quality of life will be assessed periodically over the course of the study.
Detailed Description
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This elevated risk of obesity in PLWH in South Africa is likely due to a confluence of both general considerations and HIV-specific factors. First, South Africa has experienced an accelerated background epidemic of metabolic disease in the general population with a prevalence of overweight and obesity that is nearly equal to that of high-income countries. Additionally, the International Diabetes Federation estimates that approximately 15.5 million adults are living with diabetes in the African Region, and projects it to grow to 41 million by 2045. As part of this background epidemic of metabolic disease, South Africa is also experiencing a nutrition transition, with widespread availability of processed and refined foods as well as sugar-sweetened beverages.
Regarding HIV-specific issues, in 2019 the first-line ART regimen for the South African national HIV treatment program transitioned to TLD. TLD is generally very safe and well-tolerated and has a high barrier to HIV resistance but this transition to this regimen has been associated with risk of excess weight gain at the population level. Both clinical trials and observational studies conducted in South Africa have shown substantial increases in body weight in those who are initiating this ART regimen newly and among those who are suppressed and switched, especially women. Given this, there is a growing risk of obesity in PLWH in this context and a need for management strategies to address this increasingly prevalent comorbidity.
Preventing the metabolic complications of HIV in South Africa and worldwide requires urgent solutions. To date, obesity management and diabetes prevention have largely consisted of behavioural interventions such as the Diabetes Prevention Program and related lifestyle modification efforts, focused on improving diet and increasing physical activity. However, in the past several years, novel anti-obesity pharmacologic agents such as the glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs) have shown enormous promise for obesity management and diabetes prevention in people who are HIV-negative (8-10). However, this drug class has a very limited evidence base in PLWH and relatively scant data from sub-Saharan African populations.
Currently, liraglutide is the only GLP-1 RA approved for obesity management in South Africa and this protocol proposes to use the drug for its labelled indication of "weight loss in addition to diet and exercise in adults aged 18 and above who have: (1) a BMI of 30 or greater (obese) or (2) a BMI of greater than 27 and less than 30 (overweight) and weight related health problems (such as diabetes, high blood pressure, hypercholesterolemia, or obstructive sleep apnoea).
This evidence gap motivates further inquiry into GLP-1 RAs such as liraglutide as one potential approach to obesity management and prevention of diabetes in PLWH who have comorbid obesity in South Africa, with implications for PLWH in other contexts. In this proposal, the investigators seek to further this important area of inquiry by evaluating the acceptability of liraglutide along with lifestyle counselling in PLWH who have obesity and are stable on dolutegravir-based ART in South Africa.
Conditions
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Keywords
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Study Design
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NA
SINGLE_GROUP
TREATMENT
NONE
Study Groups
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Lirgalutide
Following individual informed consent, all participants will undergo a series of basic cardiometabolic labs. They will then be initiated on liraglutide 0.6 mg administered subcutaneously, and this dose will be gradually increased over a period of 4 weeks to a dose of 3.0mg daily. Alongside drug administration, participants will receive lifestyle counselling regarding diet and physical activity. Following completion of a 12-week "on treatment" period, liraglutide will be stopped and participants will be followed for an additional 12-weeks off treatment. Body weight, cardiometabolic risk parameters, and a suite of patient-reported outcomes regarding diet, physical activity, sleep, and quality of life will be assessed periodically over the course of the study.
Liraglutide
Dosing regimen: In this study protocol, liraglutide dosing will be implemented as follows: Liraglutide will be started at a dose of 0.6 mg per day. Participants will be taught to use the injection pen and will be observed giving the first injection. The dose will then be increased by 0.6 mg each week to a maximum dosage of 3.0 mg per day at the end of 4 weeks.
This corresponds to the following dosing schedule:
Week 1: 0.6 mg per day for one week Week 2: 1.2 mg per day for one week Week 3: 1.8 mg per day for one week Week 4: 2.4 mg per day for one week Week 5-12: 3.0 mg per day for 8 weeks Week 13-24: No drug administration
Interventions
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Liraglutide
Dosing regimen: In this study protocol, liraglutide dosing will be implemented as follows: Liraglutide will be started at a dose of 0.6 mg per day. Participants will be taught to use the injection pen and will be observed giving the first injection. The dose will then be increased by 0.6 mg each week to a maximum dosage of 3.0 mg per day at the end of 4 weeks.
This corresponds to the following dosing schedule:
Week 1: 0.6 mg per day for one week Week 2: 1.2 mg per day for one week Week 3: 1.8 mg per day for one week Week 4: 2.4 mg per day for one week Week 5-12: 3.0 mg per day for 8 weeks Week 13-24: No drug administration
Other Intervention Names
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Eligibility Criteria
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Inclusion Criteria
2. Able to comply with all study procedures, including daily subcutaneous injections
3. Adults ≥18 years old
4. PLWH on dolutegravir-based ART for ≥6 months
5. Documented HIV-1 viral load in the past 6 months confirming the participant is virologically suppressed
6. BMI ≥30 kg/m2
7. Desiring weight loss
8. Willing to undertake lifestyle change
9. Not on any weight loss agent for the duration of the study
Exclusion Criteria
2. Current use of medications for diabetes
3. Known contraindications to liraglutide, such as hypersensitivity to a component of the drug
4. Current pregnancy or desire to become pregnant
5. History of pancreatitis
6. History of thyroid disease
7. History of harmful use of alcohol
8. Clinically unstable in the opinion of the investigator
18 Years
ALL
No
Sponsors
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National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK)
NIH
Brigham and Women's Hospital
OTHER
Responsible Party
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Jennifer M. Manne-Goehler, MD, SCD
Assistant Professor of Medicine
Principal Investigators
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Jennifer Manne-Goehler, MD, ScD
Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR
Brigham and Women's Hospital
Locations
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Africa Health Research Institute Clinical Trials Unit
Mtubatuba, , South Africa
Countries
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Central Contacts
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Facility Contacts
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Ngundu Behuhuma, MBChB
Role: primary
References
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Venter WDF, Moorhouse M, Sokhela S, Fairlie L, Mashabane N, Masenya M, Serenata C, Akpomiemie G, Qavi A, Chandiwana N, Norris S, Chersich M, Clayden P, Abrams E, Arulappan N, Vos A, McCann K, Simmons B, Hill A. Dolutegravir plus Two Different Prodrugs of Tenofovir to Treat HIV. N Engl J Med. 2019 Aug 29;381(9):803-815. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa1902824. Epub 2019 Jul 24.
Venter WDF, Sokhela S, Simmons B, Moorhouse M, Fairlie L, Mashabane N, Serenata C, Akpomiemie G, Masenya M, Qavi A, Chandiwana N, McCann K, Norris S, Chersich M, Maartens G, Lalla-Edward S, Vos A, Clayden P, Abrams E, Arulappan N, Hill A. Dolutegravir with emtricitabine and tenofovir alafenamide or tenofovir disoproxil fumarate versus efavirenz, emtricitabine, and tenofovir disoproxil fumarate for initial treatment of HIV-1 infection (ADVANCE): week 96 results from a randomised, phase 3, non-inferiority trial. Lancet HIV. 2020 Oct;7(10):e666-e676. doi: 10.1016/S2352-3018(20)30241-1.
Manne-Goehler J, Rahim N, van Empel E, de Vlieg R, Chamberlin G, Ihama A, Castle A, Mabweazara S, Venter WDF, Chandiwana N, Levitt NS, Siedner M. Perceptions of Health, Body Size, and Nutritional Risk Factors for Obesity in People with HIV in South Africa. AIDS Behav. 2024 Jan;28(1):367-375. doi: 10.1007/s10461-023-04152-7. Epub 2023 Aug 26.
Chandiwana NC, Siedner MJ, Marconi VC, Hill A, Ali MK, Batterham RL, Venter WDF. Weight Gain After HIV Therapy Initiation: Pathophysiology and Implications. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2024 Jan 18;109(2):e478-e487. doi: 10.1210/clinem/dgad411.
Magodoro IM, Olivier S, Gareta D, Koole O, Modise TH, Gunda R, Herbst K, Pillay D, Wong EB, Siedner MJ. Linkage to HIV care and hypertension and diabetes control in rural South Africa: Results from the population-based Vukuzazi Study. PLOS Glob Public Health. 2022 Nov 2;2(11):e0001221. doi: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0001221. eCollection 2022.
Rubino DM, Greenway FL, Khalid U, O'Neil PM, Rosenstock J, Sorrig R, Wadden TA, Wizert A, Garvey WT; STEP 8 Investigators. Effect of Weekly Subcutaneous Semaglutide vs Daily Liraglutide on Body Weight in Adults With Overweight or Obesity Without Diabetes: The STEP 8 Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA. 2022 Jan 11;327(2):138-150. doi: 10.1001/jama.2021.23619.
Wadden TA, Bailey TS, Billings LK, Davies M, Frias JP, Koroleva A, Lingvay I, O'Neil PM, Rubino DM, Skovgaard D, Wallenstein SOR, Garvey WT; STEP 3 Investigators. Effect of Subcutaneous Semaglutide vs Placebo as an Adjunct to Intensive Behavioral Therapy on Body Weight in Adults With Overweight or Obesity: The STEP 3 Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA. 2021 Apr 13;325(14):1403-1413. doi: 10.1001/jama.2021.1831.
Wilding JPH, Batterham RL, Calanna S, Davies M, Van Gaal LF, Lingvay I, McGowan BM, Rosenstock J, Tran MTD, Wadden TA, Wharton S, Yokote K, Zeuthen N, Kushner RF; STEP 1 Study Group. Once-Weekly Semaglutide in Adults with Overweight or Obesity. N Engl J Med. 2021 Mar 18;384(11):989-1002. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa2032183. Epub 2021 Feb 10.
Hyle EP, Bekker LG, Martey EB, Huang M, Xu A, Parker RA, Walensky RP, Middelkoop K. Cardiovascular risk factors among ART-experienced people with HIV in South Africa. J Int AIDS Soc. 2019 Apr;22(4):e25274. doi: 10.1002/jia2.25274.
Bailin SS, Gabriel CL, Wanjalla CN, Koethe JR. Obesity and Weight Gain in Persons with HIV. Curr HIV/AIDS Rep. 2020 Apr;17(2):138-150. doi: 10.1007/s11904-020-00483-5.
Other Identifiers
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2023P002985
Identifier Type: -
Identifier Source: org_study_id