Research analysis shows that Eli Lilly's diet pills are more effective than Novo Nordisk, and Novo Nordisk's stock price fell before the market.
On Tuesday, Novo Nordisk, the manufacturer of the popular weight loss drug Wegovy, fell 1.64% in the premarket.
Earlier, a study published in the “Journal of the American Medical Association · Internal Medicine” on Monday showed that Novo Nordisk's competitor Eli Lilly's remedy Mounjaro was more effective in losing weight.
The study reviewed health records and other data to assess the rate and percentage of weight loss in overweight and obese people treated with tirzepatide (the active ingredient in Eli Lilly Mounjaro and Zepbound) and simeglutide (a major component in Nordisk Wegovy and Ozempic).
The researchers analyzed the weight loss trajectories of 9193 patients treated with Mounjaro and the same number of matched patients treated with Ozempic, about half of whom had type 2 diabetes.
After considering individual risk factors, the report showed that compared to patients taking Ozempic, patients taking Mounjaro were 76% more likely to lose at least 5% of their body weight, more than twice as likely to lose at least 10% of their body weight, and more than three times as likely to lose at least 15% of their body weight.
Some researchers indicated that both Ozempic and Mounjaro were used in type 2 diabetics, but half of the study participants only used these drugs to lose weight, which may affect the study results.
In response, Novo Nordisk stated in an email statement sent to the media: “This analysis only compared the weight loss results of Ozempic (Ozempic) and tirzepatide (Mounjaro), but did not include Wegovy.” He also pointed out that the best way to compare the two weight loss drugs is through “head-to-head” clinical trials, and no such tests have been completed yet. Eli Lilly did not immediately respond.