GLP-1RAs Reduce Suicide Risk in Youth with Obesity: Daily Dose

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Patient Care brings primary care clinicians a lot of medical news every day—it’s easy to miss an important study. The Daily Dose provides a concise summary of one of the website's leading stories you may not have seen.

On October 15, 2024, we reported on findings from a study published in JAMA Pediatrics that examined the association between glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonist (GLP-1RA) initiation and suicidal ideation or attempts in adolescents with obesity.

The study

For the cohort study, investigators used electronic health record (EHR) data from the TriNetX global database to identify adolescents aged 12 to 18 years diagnosed with obesity between December 2019 and June 2024. The data were from 120 health care organizations, mainly in the US. Participants were considered to have used a GLP-1RA if they were prescribed either liraglutide or semaglutide within 12 months of receiving an obesity diagnosis. Researchers compared adolescents using a GLP-1RA with those who only received lifestyle intervention.

Researchers identified 4052 adolescents who were prescribed a GLP-1RA and 50 112 treated only with lifestyle intervention in the TriNetX database. Using propensity-score matching, they matched 3456 adolescents using a GLP-1RA (mean age, 15.4 years; 59% girls) with control participants treated with lifestyle intervention (mean age, 15.6 years; 62% girls). Each cohort was balanced for baseline demographic characteristics, psychiatric medications and comorbidities, and diagnoses associated with socioeconomic status and health care access.

The findings

Results showed that adolescents who received GLP-1RA therapy had a 33% lower risk of experiencing suicidal ideation or attempts over 12 months of follow-up compared to propensity score-matched controls treated with lifestyle intervention (1.45% vs 2.26%; HR 0.67, 95% CI 0.47-0.95; P = .02)

Authors' comment

"Results of this study suggest that GLP1R treatment was associated with lower risks of suicidal ideation or attempts in adolescents with obesity and highlights the need for further study to explore the underlying mechanisms."

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