Oral Presentation Australian and New Zealand Obesity Society Annual Scientific Conference 2026

Real-world effectiveness of hospital-funded incretin-based pharmacotherapy for the management of severe obesity in public multidisciplinary weight management programs (144766)

Sarah Hirst 1 , Marjy Grealish 2 3 , Andrea Xia 4 5 , Supreet Saluja 4 5 , Christine Madronio 4 5 , Sophia Kwan 4 5 , Kathy Grudzinskas 3 , Nick Kormas 3 , Kate McBride 1 , Kathryn Williams 4 5 6 , Milan Piya 1 2 3
  1. Translational Health Research Institute, Western Sydney University, Sydney, NSW, Australia
  2. School of Medicine, Western Sydney University, Sydney, NSW, Australia
  3. South Western Sydney Metabolic Rehabilitation and Bariatric Program, Camden Hospital, Camden, NSW, Australia
  4. Nepean Family Metabolic Health Service, Nepean Hospital, Penrith, NSW, Australia
  5. Faculty of Medicine and Health, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia
  6. Charles Perkins Centre, The University of Sydney , Sydney, NSW, Australia

Aim: This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of hospital-funded incretin-based pharmacotherapy across two multidisciplinary weight management programs (WMP).

Methods: Adults with severe obesity who commenced hospital-funded tirzepatide (Mounjaro, needed BMI≥55kg/m2) in one WMP or semaglutide (Wegovy, BMI≥40kg/m2) in another WMP in Sydney, between May 2025 and June 2026, were included. Routinely collected anthropometric, clinical and treatment outcome data at baseline, 3, 6 and 9 months were retrospectively analysed. Continuous variables are presented as mean ±SD or median (Q1-Q3).

Results: Eighty-one adults commenced hospital-funded incretin-based pharmacotherapy (semaglutide n=51; tirzepatide n=30). Median baseline weight was 158.2 kg (128.4-177.3) in the semaglutide cohort and 180.0 kg (166.6-200.9) in the tirzepatide cohort. Corresponding median BMI values were 51.7 kg/m² (44.8-61.7) and 62.9 kg/m² (59.5-71.7), respectively.

Common comorbidities included hypertension (56.0% vs 30%), obstructive sleep apnoea (44.0% vs 54.8%), and hyperlipidaemia (30% vs 38.0%) in the semaglutide and tirzepatide cohorts, respectively. Median weight loss in the semaglutide cohort was 5.6 (2.9-10.1) kg, 10.7 (4.2-16.6) kg, and 10.6 (8.0-15.7) kg at 3 (n=33), 6 (n=27), and 9 months (n=13), respectively. Corresponding values for the tirzepatide cohort were 7.3 (1.5-11.3) kg, 15.6 (9.2-26.6) kg, and 16.7 (10.5-24.8) kg at 3 (n=26), 6 (n=21), and 9 months (n=16), respectively.

Body composition data were available only for the tirzepatide cohort and demonstrated median reductions in body fat percentage of 2.1% (1.2-3.6) and 2.6% (0.9-4.0) at 3 and 6 months, respectively. Corresponding reductions in fat-free mass were 2.9 kg (1.4-8.9) and 5.0 kg (1.8-16.0).

No participants receiving tirzepatide discontinued treatment; 8/51 (15.7%) participants receiving semaglutide discontinued therapy, most commonly due to progression to bariatric surgery (n=4;50%).

Conclusion: Real-world experience from two public multidisciplinary WMPs suggests that hospital-funded incretin-based pharmacotherapy may be practically delivered with low dropout rates, as part of evidence-based obesity management for adults with severe obesity.