OBJECTIVES

: Obesity is a risk factor for the development of several diseases, including type 2 diabetes, and has become an epidemic currently affecting ~40% of US adults. Despite its increasing impact on societies, few drug treatments have been approved for this condition. We analyzed the publication patterns of obesity publications over the past 2 decades, including a focus on drugs approved for treatment of obesity in the USA.

METHODS

: Original articles and congress abstracts reporting on obesity were identified from a literature search in EMBASE (2000–Dec 20, 2019), including randomized controlled trial (RCT) and real-world and health-economic (RW/HE) publication types. Descriptive statistics were used to compare the proportions of RCT and RW/HE publications as part of all obesity publications over time. We also evaluated RCT vs RW/HE publication patterns specifically for marketed obesity drugs and compared these with patterns for marketed diabetes drugs.

RESULTS

: The total number of publications on obesity increased by >11-fold from 2000 to 2019, a trend that was followed by both RCT and RW/HE publications. The proportion of RCT publications fluctuated little over time, remaining at ~6%, while the proportion of RW/HE obesity publications increased from 4.5% in 2000 to 20.1% in 2019. The absolute number of RCT publications for marketed drugs peaked 2-3 years before the number of RW/HE publications, although this pattern was not consistently observed for diabetes drugs.

CONCLUSIONS

: The increase in the proportion of RW/HE publications may reflect the increasing need to provide real-world evidence to stakeholders. RW/HE publications for obesity drugs (but not diabetes drugs) lag behind RCT publications by several years, possibly resulting from maturity of the therapeutic area, or regulatory, reimbursement, or company tactics. More timely publication of RW/HE evidence could fulfil stakeholder needs and optimize the access to and reimbursement of novel prescription weight loss drugs.