Impact of exenatide on weight loss and eating behavior in adults with craniopharyngioma-related obesity: the CRANIOEXE randomized placebo-controlled trial.

Abstract

Importance: A major issue in the management of craniopharyngioma-related obesity (CRO) is the ineffectiveness of the current therapeutic approaches.

Objective: To study the efficacy of glucagon-like peptide-1 analogs compared with placebo in adults with obesity CRO.

Design: A double-blind multicenter superiority randomized clinical in trial in two parallel arms.

Setting: Eleven French University Hospital Centers.

Participants: Adults with CRO (body mass index > 30 kg/m²) without the sign of recurrence of craniopharyngioma in the past year.

Interventions: Exenatide or placebo injected subcutaneously twice a day during 26 weeks.

Main outcomes and measures: The primary outcome was the mean change in body weight at week 26 in the intention-to-treat population. Secondary outcomes were eating behavior, calories intake, energy expenditure, cardiovascular, metabolic risk factor, quality of life, and the tolerance profile.

Results: At week 26, weight decreased from baseline by a mean of -3.8 (SD 4.3) kg for exenatide and -1.6 (3.8) kg for placebo. The adjusted mean treatment difference was -3.1 kg (95% confidence interval [CI] -7.0 to 0.7, P = 0.11). Results were compatible with a higher reduction of hunger score with exenatide compared with placebo (estimated treatment difference in change from baseline to week 26: -2.3, 95% CI -4.5 to -0.2), while all other outcomes did not significantly differ between groups. Adverse events were more common with exenatide versus placebo, and occurred in, respectively, 19 (95%) participants (108 events) and 14 (70%) participants (54 events).

Conclusions and relevance: Combined with intensive lifestyle interventions, a 26-week treatment with exenatide was not demonstrated superior to placebo to treat craniopharyngioma-related obesity.