Efficacy and safety of glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists in the treatment of binge eating disorder in Type 2 diabetic patients: a pilot study in real world clinical practice

BACKGROUND : Binge eating disorder (BED) is the most prevalent eating disorder in the population, poorly studied in patients with Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). There are no generally accepted guidelines on pharmacological treatment of BED and no studies with more than 3-month duration. Glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonists (GLP1RA) could be a promising class of agents for the treatment of BED in T2DM patients due to their effects on central mechanisms of appetite and satiety regulation. AIM : To assess efficacy and safety of GLP1 RA for treatment of BED in patients with T2D. METHODS : Sixty six outpatients with T2DM and BED participated in this pilot open-label prospective comparative study of 6 mo’ duration followed by a 6 mo follow-up after GLP1RA withdrawal. All 66 continued their previous anti-hyperglycemic agents, 33 patients (50%) were prescribed a GLPRA (dulaglutide, or semaglutide, or lixisenatide combined with glargin). ­Thirty three patients were in the control group without GLPRA. In addition to standard clinical and laboratory examinations, all patients completed tests/questionnaires for assessment of their quality of life, depression, stait/trait anxiety, alexithymia and other personality characteristics, and physical complaints. Changes in BED severity and all other parameters were assessed at 3 and 6 months, and BED severity only was assessed at 6 months after the end of GLP1RA. RESULTS : After 6 months of GLP1RA therapy, 63,6% of the patients were in complete remission of BED (р