(HealthDay News) — For patients with obesity and type 2 diabetes, exenatide reduces epicardial adipose tissue (EAT) and liver fat content, according to a study published in Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism.
Anne Dutour, MD, PhD, from Inserm U1062 in Marseille, France, and colleagues randomly assigned 44 obese patients with type 2 diabetes to receive 26 weeks of exenatide or reference treatment according to French guidelines. Forty-five minutes after a standardized meal, EAT, myocardial (MTGC), hepatic (HTGC), and pancreatic triglyceride (PTGC) content were assessed with 3-Tesla magnetic resonance imaging and 1H-magnetic resonance spectroscopy.
The researchers found that there were similar improvements in HbA1c with exenatide and reference treatment (P=.29). Significant weight loss was seen for exenatide only (P=.001 for the difference between groups). Significant reductions were seen in EAT and HTGC with exenatide vs the reference-treated group (P=.003 and P=.007, respectively). There were no significant differences in other ectopic fat stores, PTGC, or MTGC.
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Reductions in liver fat and EAT were not associated with homeostasis model assessment-insulin resistance, adiponectin, HbA1c, or fructosamin change in the exenatide group; they did correlate with weight loss (P=.03 and P=.018, respectively).
“Exenatide is an effective treatment to reduce liver fat content and epicardial fat in obese patients with type 2 diabetes, and these effects are mainly weight loss dependent,” the researchers wrote.
