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A Plethora of GLP-1 Agonists: Decisions About What to Use and When

  • Pharmacologic Treatment of Type 2 Diabetes (HE Lebovitz and G Bahtiyar, Section Editors)
  • Published:
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Abstract

Incretin-based therapies are important addition to our armamentarium for the treatment of type 2 diabetes (T2DM). There are six Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RAs) which have received regulatory approval for clinical use. The short-acting GLP-1RAs include exenatide twice daily, liraglutide once daily, and lixisenatide once daily. The approved long-acting GLP-1RAs are administered weekly and are exenatide, albiglutide, and dulaglutide. Although all of these therapies lower hemoglobin A1C (HbA1C), there also are unique features of GLP-1RAs that have been made manifest from clinical trial data with regard to weight-loss efficacy, fasting and post-prandial glucose control, cardiovascular safety and protection, and gastrointestinal and injection adverse effects. It is imperative to consider these features when tailoring the choice of a GLP-1RA to patient specific characteristics.

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Abbreviations

GLP-1RA:

glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist

HbA1C:

hemoglobin A1C

HF:

heart failure

MACE:

major adverse cardiac events

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, One Baylor Plaza, ABBR R615, Houston, TX, 77030, USA

    Susan L. Samson

  2. Departments of Medicine, Molecular and Cellular Biology, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, One Baylor Plaza, BCM 620, Houston, TX, 77030, USA

    Alan J. Garber

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  1. Susan L. Samson
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  2. Alan J. Garber
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Correspondence to Susan L. Samson.

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Conflict of Interest

Susan L. Samson has no relevant pharmaceutical disclosures but she is on the Board of Directors of the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists. Alan J. Garber serves as consultant and on advisory boards for Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Merck & Co., Novo Nordisk Inc. He is the past president of the American College of Endocrinology and the Board of Director of the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists and serves on the board of director of both associations.

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This article does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects performed by any of the authors.

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This article is part of the Topical Collection on Pharmacologic Treatment of Type 2 Diabetes

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Samson, S.L., Garber, A.J. A Plethora of GLP-1 Agonists: Decisions About What to Use and When. Curr Diab Rep 16, 120 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11892-016-0823-6

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