What is tirzepatide, and what are its demonstrated effects on weight reduction in clinical trials?

Tirzepatide is a glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide and glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist. It has been approved for type 2 diabetes and for people with obesity or overweight. Clinical trials like SURMOUNT-1, SURMOUNT-3, and SURMOUNT-4 have studied its effectiveness in weight reduction.

Tirzepatide is a glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide and glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist. It has demonstrated clinically meaningful weight reduction in people with obesity or overweight without type 2 diabetes in phase 3 SURMOUNT trials. For instance:


In SURMOUNT-1, treatment with 15 mg tirzepatide was associated with a 22.5% mean bodyweight reduction at week 72.

In SURMOUNT-3, 72 weeks of treatment with tirzepatide (maximum tolerated doses of 10 or 15 mg) resulted in a 21.1% mean bodyweight reduction.

In SURMOUNT-4, participants achieved a 20.9% mean bodyweight reduction during a 36-week tirzepatide lead-in period, and those who continued for an additional 52 weeks experienced an additional 6.7% mean bodyweight reduction.