Post-weight-loss maintenance

Research context

STEP 5 reported two-year maintenance of weight reduction with continued semaglutide. SURMOUNT-4 used a randomised-withdrawal design and reported substantial weight regain after withdrawal to placebo. Together, the two trials frame the clinical question: maintenance therapy works while continued; discontinuation typically leads to regain.

Why this matters metabolically

The chronic, relapsing-remitting nature of obesity is consistent with the maintenance evidence. Framing incretin therapy as a chronic treatment rather than a short-term intervention shapes both clinical and policy decisions.

FAQs

Is GLP-1 therapy for obesity intended to be permanent?

Continued therapy maintains weight reduction; discontinuation typically leads to weight regain. Treatment duration is a clinical judgement informed by ongoing benefit, tolerability and the patient's broader cardiometabolic context.