Pharmacotherapy Recommendations for Obesity Management from the AGA: A Guideline Topline

Antiobesity medications (AOMs) for the long-term management of the disease have demonstrated high efficacy for weight loss, authors of the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) guideline on pharmacotherapy for adults with obesity wrote in the 2022 evidence-based recommendations. Use of the agents in routine clinical practice, however, appears limited, with wide variability and a small number of health care professionals writing 90% or more of the prescriptions, the guideline committee noted. The reasons likely skew to lack of familiarity with the medications and limited access and insurance coverage, the committee noted.

This Patient Care Guideline Topline highlights the considerations and cautions for use for 8 AOMs approved by the US FDA for management of overweight and obesity and is meant as a primer for primary care clinicians. The full clinical guideline is available here.

Note: In November 2023 the GIP/GLP-1 RA tirzepatide, which had been approved for treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus, was approved by the FDA for managing overweight and obesity. In a recent, large cohort study with over 40,000 adults, tirzepatide was associated with significantly greater weight loss than semaglutide.