Comparative effects of liraglutide 3 mg vs structured lifestyle modification on body weight, liver fat and liver function in obese patients with non‐alcoholic fatty liver disease: A pilot randomized trial

We compared the effects of weight loss induced by the glucagon‐like peptide 1‐agonist liraglutide with a structured lifestyle intervention in obese adults with non‐alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Obese (body mass index ≥30 kg/m2, mean weight 96.0 ± 16.3 kg) non‐diabetic Asian adults, with NAFLD diagnosed by liver fat fraction (LFF) ≥ 5.5% on magnetic resonance imaging without other causes of hepatic steatosis, were randomized to a supervised program of dieting (restriction by 400 kilocalories/d) plus moderate‐intensity aerobic exercise (~200 min/wk; DE group, n = 12), or liraglutide at the 3 mg daily dose approved for weight loss (LI group, n = 12), for 26 weeks. Both DE and LI groups had significant (P < .01) and similar reductions in weight (−3.5 ± 3.3 vs −3.5 ± 2.1 kg, respectively, P = .72), LFF (−8.9 ± 13.4 vs −7.2% ± 7.1%, P = .70), serum alanine aminotransferase (−42 ± 46 vs −34 ± 27 U/L, P = .52) and aspartate aminotransferase (−23 ± 24 vs −18 ± 15 U/L, P = .53). In this first randomized study comparing the 2 weight‐loss modalities for improving NAFLD, liraglutide was as effective as structured lifestyle modification.