(Reuters) – Pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly on Wednesday unveiled the results of a survey showing that its obesity treatment, Zepbound, showed better results than that of its rival Novo Nordisk, Wegovy.
In the trial commissioned by Eli Lilly, the 751 people tested with Zepbound lost an average of 20.2% of their weight after 72 weeks, compared to 13.7% for the group treated with Wegovy.
This data shows for the first time that when the trial parameters are exactly the same, Eli Lilly’s treatment is more effective for weight loss.
Before the data was released, Evan Seigerman, an analyst at BMO Capital Markets, said in a note that the market expected Zepbound to demonstrate superior efficiency.
These results could persuade American insurers and European health authorities to grant preferential coverage to Zepbound over Wegovy.
An analysis of medical records and other data published by the medical journal JAMA Internal Medicine earlier this year showed that Zepbound led to faster and greater weight loss than Wegovy.
Wegovy was approved in the United States as a treatment for heart disease in March, while Zepbound is expected to get the green light as a treatment for obstructive sleep apnea.
The two drugs are sold in the United States under different names – Ozempic for Novo Nordisk and Mounjaro for Eli Lilly – in the treatment of type 2 diabetes.
(Reporting Patrick Wingrove in New York with Manas Mishra in Bangalore; Mara Vîlcu, editing by Kate Entringer)
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