Research

Hormonal

GLP-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RAs) promote significant weight loss and BMI reduction in people with HIV (PWH), with tirzepatide and longer treatment duration (>6 months) being the strongest predictors of achieving >5% weight loss.

If you have HIV and are struggling with weight gain, GLP-1 receptor agonists (like semaglutide or tirzepatide) are a proven, effective treatment option. The study shows that sticking with the medication for more than 6 months and reaching the maximum dose significantly increases your chances of losing more than 5% of your body weight. Tirzepatide, in particular, showed the strongest association with significant weight loss in this population.

ModerateSupportsMEDIUM confidence
GLP-1RA therapy resulted, on average, in a weight loss of 5.4 kg, decrease in BMI by 1.8 kg/m2... In the multivariable analysis, higher baseline BMI... treatment duration of GLP-1RA therapy >6 months... and use of tirzepatide... were significantly more likely to be associated with >5% weight loss.
Q. Nguyen et al. · Clinical Infectious Diseases · 2024

Why this rating

Retrospective single-center cohort study; lacks randomization but has a substantial sample size (N=225) and multivariable analysis.

Source

Glucagon-like Peptide 1 Receptor Agonists Promote Weight Loss Among People With HIV

Q. Nguyen et al. · Clinical Infectious Diseases · 2024

DOI 10.1093/cid/ciae151

cohort · n=225Cited 16×
Read the paper
DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10

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