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According to new research, nearly 500 adults with obesity who took the new weight loss medication tirzepatide for about eight months saw a significant reduction in their systolic blood pressure--the top number in a blood pressure reading.
The findings were published in Hypertension, an American Heart Association journal. When it comes to cardiovascular death, diastolic blood pressure--the number at the bottom of the blood pressure reading--is not as good a predictor as systolic blood pressure, which is the upper number. Over 122 million individuals in the United States, or 47 per cent of adults, have hypertension, and nearly 42 per cent of adults are obese, according to the American Heart Association's 2024 Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics. Tirzepatide works by mimicking two metabolic hormones in the body: it acts as a glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist and also as a glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP) receptor agonist. These hormones stimulate insulin secretion and sensitivity after a person eats. Together, they have been found so far to help regulate the body's blood sugar levels, slow down digestion and reduce appetite, which makes a person feel more full and eat less, leading to weight loss. In contrast, semaglutide has only the GLP-1 hormone; it does not contain a GIP receptor agonist. In 2022, the Food and Drug Administration approved tirzepatide for prescription as a treatment for Type 2 diabetes. In late 2023, the FDA also approved it for chronic weight management for people with obesity (body mass index of 30 kg/m2 or higher) or overweight (body mass index of 27-29 kg/m2) and at least one weight-related health condition, such as high blood pressure, Type 2 diabetes or high cholesterol. "Our findings indicate treating obesity with the weight loss medication tirzepatide may be an effective strategy for preventing or treating high blood pressure," said lead study author James A de Lemos, MD, FAHA, the Kern Wildenthal, MD, PhD, distinguished chair of cardiology and a professor of medicine at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas. "Although tirzepatide has been studied as a weight loss medication, the blood pressure reduction in our patients in this study was impressive. While it is not known if the impact on blood pressure was due to the medication or the participants' weight loss, the lower blood pressure measures seen with tirzepatide rivaled what is seen for many hypertension medications." The current research was a planned sub-study including 600 of the participants from the SURMOUNT-1 weight loss study to determine if there was an effect on blood pressure. The sub-study was designed to assess the effects of tirzepatide on blood pressure levels as measured by 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure monitoring in people with obesity but without Type 2 diabetes. Participants received either a placebo or a dose of tirzepatide in one of three strengths (5 mg, 10 mg or 15 mg). About one-third of participants reported having high blood pressure at the beginning of the study and were taking one or more hypertension medications. When the sub-study began, all of the participants had blood pressure levels that were less than 140/90 mm Hg, and if they used blood pressure medications, they were required to have been taking their blood pressure medications for at least three months. The sub-study included participants who had hypertension and normal blood pressure. (ANI)
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