The leading adverse events were nausea, diarrhea, and constipation. Nausea most commonly appeared in the first 4 weeks of treatment and was generally mild or moderate.
"The safety profile was generally consistent with that of previous clinical trials with liraglutide 3.0 mg and liraglutide 1.8 mg in individuals with type 2 diabetes," Dr. Pi-Sunyer commented.
Patients in the liraglutide group had a higher rate of acute pancreatitis (0.3 vs. 0.1 events per 100 patient-years of exposure) and gallbladder disorders (2.7 vs. 1.0 events per 100 patient-years of exposure). A single patient in each treatment group had both conditions.
Dr. Pi-Sunyer disclosed that he is an adviser to Novo Nordisk, Weight Watchers, Johnson & Johnson, Vivus, Eisai, and Zafgen. Novo Nordisk sponsored the trial and supported preparation of the presentation.
*CORRECTION, 5/22/14: A previous version of this article stated that Victoza was used in the SCALE trial. The liraglutide 3.0-mg formulation used in SCALE is investigational.