Body Weight Reduction Associated with the Sibutramine Treatment: Overall Results of the PRIMAVERA Primary Health Care Trial

Abstract

Objective: The aim of the study was to assess the effectiveness and safety of long-term sibutramine therapy in routine clinical practice. Methods: In total, 98,774 patients (82.3% women, 17.7% men) from 142 cities of the Russian Federation were enrolled in the PRIMAVERA program. The mean age of the patients was 39.39 ± 10.38 years, the mean body weight was 99.1 ± 14.28 kg, and the mean BMI was 35.7 ± 4.41 kg/m². The duration of the sibutramine therapy was determined by physicians: 59.3% of patients took the drug for 6 months, the treatment course of 37.7% of patients was 12 months, and 3% of patients had treatment for 3 months. Results: The BMI reduction correlated with the treatment duration: 3.4 ± 1.53 kg/m² after 3 months of therapy, 5.4 ± 2.22 kg/m² after 6 months, and 7.2 ± 3.07 kg/m² after 12 months. The body weight reduction after 3, 6 and 12 months of treatment was 9.5%, 15.1%, and 19.7%, respectively. The body weight loss associated with sibutramine treatment was accompanied by a slight decrease in blood pressure and did not lead to any significant increases of the heart rate. Conclusions: The results of the PRIMAVERA study confirmed the lack of increased risk of using sibutramine in routine clinical practice in patients without underlying cardiovascular disease and low rate of adverse events.