This content material initially appeared on On a regular basis Well being. Republished with permission.
By Lisa Rapaport
Key Takeaways
- Tirzepatide, the lively ingredient in Mounjaro and Zepbound, lowered sleep apnea signs for folks with weight problems.
- The drug improved sleep apnea signs whether or not or not folks used a PAP machine.
- Drugmaker Eli Lilly plans to hunt FDA approval for tirzepatide as a remedy for obstructive sleep apnea.
Tirzepatide, the primary ingredient within the injected weight reduction and diabetes medication Zepbound and Mounjaro, may assist scale back obstructive sleep apnea signs, preliminary outcomes from two late-stage research recommend.
Each of the research examined tirzepatide in folks with weight problems and obstructive sleep apnea, a situation that causes temporary episodes of totally or partially halted respiration all through the evening that’s usually exacerbated by extra weight. Members had been randomly assigned to take both tirzepatide or a placebo for one 12 months.
In a single research of folks with sleep apnea who didn’t use respiration units at evening, the variety of apnea episodes dropped by 55 % after one 12 months with tirzepatide, in contrast with 5 % on placebo, in keeping with preliminary research outcomes reported by drugmaker Eli Lilly that haven’t been printed or independently verified.[1]
Outcomes had been comparable for sufferers who wore what’s referred to as a optimistic airway strain (PAP) machine at evening with a masks that blows air into the higher airways to assist assist regular respiration. For folks with apnea who used a PAP machine, apnea episodes declined by 63 % after a 12 months in contrast with about 6 % with the placebo.
Tirzepatide Causes Weight Loss, Which Improves Sleep Apnea
“It’s not stunning that tirzepatide would assist — tirzepatide causes weight reduction and weight reduction improves sleep apnea,” says Susan Spratt, MD, a professor of endocrinology at Duke College College of Medication in Durham, North Carolina, who wasn’t concerned in both of the research.
“I feel what’s stunning is the quantity that tirzepatide lowered the signs of sleep apnea,” Dr. Spratt says.
Folks with apnea who weren’t on PAP remedy misplaced a mean of 18 % of their physique weight after one 12 months on tirzepatide, in keeping with the outcomes reported by Eli Lilly. Folks on PAP remedies who took tirzepatide misplaced 20 % of their physique weight on common.
What’s exceptional about these preliminary outcomes is that the quantity of weight reduction achieved after one 12 months with tirzepatide is way larger than what is usually achieved with life-style adjustments like consuming much less or exercising extra or with weight reduction surgical procedure, says Eric Landsness, MD, PhD, an assistant professor of neurology and sleep drugs at Washington College College of Medication in St. Louis.
Weight Performs a Function in Sleep Apnea
“I’m not stunned by the magnitude of obstructive sleep apnea change,” says Dr. Landsess, who wasn’t concerned in both of the research. “I feel that is actually a testomony to how a lot weight performs a task within the severity of obstructive sleep apnea.”
Unwanted effects of tirzepatide had been delicate to average in severity and most frequently included gastrointestinal points like diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, and constipation, in keeping with Eli Lilly.
Eli Lilly to Search FDA Approval for Tirezepatide as Remedy for Sleep Apnea
Tirzepatide is the primary drug in a brand new household of medicines that concentrate on two hormones — glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) and glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP) — which are concerned in sustaining wholesome blood sugar ranges and sending alerts from the intestine to the mind when persons are full.
The U.S. Meals and Drug Administration (FDA) has accredited one drug made with tirzepatide, Mounjaro, to deal with kind 2 diabetes, and one other one, Zepbound, for weight reduction. However many sufferers with out kind 2 diabetes have struggled to get insurance coverage protection for these medicines, Spratt says.
Primarily based on outcomes from the 2 research, the corporate mentioned it plans to hunt FDA approval this 12 months to promote tirzepatide as a remedy for moderate-to-severe obstructive sleep apnea.
“If tirzepatide is accredited by the FDA, it is going to positively be a sport changer,” Spratt says.
