Treatment with the amylin analog pramlintide has been shown to reduce weight in obese patients, according to researchers.

The lead investigator Dr. Christian Weyer tells us that, "These findings are the most robust clinical proof of concept reported to date for the anti-obesity potential of a satiogenic peptide hormone." 

In his published article Dr. Weyer of Amylin pharmaceuticals notes that it has been very effective in reducing A1C and weight in type 2 diabetics.

They studied 204 subjects with a body mass index of 37.8.  Then they were randomized to pramlintide or placebo, and both were injected three times a day subcutaneously, before meals.

Subjects started at pramlintide doses of 30 mcg and were allowed to incrementally increase this to 240 mcg.
The agent was generally well tolerated and 88% of the subjects were able to escalate to the maximum dose over the 16-week study period. Twenty-nine percent of the pramlintide subjects withdrew from the study, compared to 25% of placebo patients.

Pramlintide patients who completed the study had a placebo-corrected reduction in body weight of 8.8 pounds and a 3.6 cm drop in waist circumference.

More than 30% of the active treatment group achieved a weight loss of 5% or more, compared to only 2% of placebo patients. Improvements in appetite control were reported by 72% and 31%, respectively. Results were similar for those reporting that their well-being had improved (52% versus 17%).

From these findings, Dr. Weyer feels that pramlintide deserves further evaluation as a possible treatment for obesity.
There are now several clinical studies are currently underway in which pramlintide is being evaluated in combination therapy, either with approved oral weight loss medications, or with other neurohormones," he added.

"In animal models of diet-induced obesity," he concluded, "these combinatorial regimens have yielded marked, additive or even synergistic weight loss."

J Clin Endocrinol Metab 2007;92:2977-2983.

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