Is Orlistat useful for diabetes?

Previous clinical trials of orlistat (Orlistat) in non-diabetic obese patients showed that after 1 year of treatment, orlistat achieved greater weight loss than placebo treatment. Data from a 1-year randomized controlled trial in patients with diabetes receiving sulfonylureas or metformin suggest that orlistat produces less weight loss in patients with type 2 diabetes than in patients without diabetes. However, the relative difference in weight loss between orlistat and placebo treatments appeared to be consistent in diabetic and nondiabetic subjects.

Weight loss is the cornerstone of treatment for overweight or obese patients with type 2 diabetes. However, in obese patients with diabetes, especially those treated with insulin, long-term weight loss is difficult to achieve with conventional dietary therapy. The current study shows that orlistat plus diet therapy produces greater weight loss and improvements in glycemic control than diet therapy alone. Treatment with orlistat plus diet also reduced insulin dose requirements and produced greater reductions in total andLDL cholesterol and the LDL/HDL cholesterol ratio compared with placebo plus diet.

The original drug of Orlistat has been marketed in China, but it has not yet entered the scope of medical insurance. There are also domestically produced drugs developed by other pharmaceutical companies on the market. The price of each box may be around tens of RMB, which is cheap. The price of the Indian version of Orlistat listed overseas is 120mg*84 capsules per box, which may be around a few hundred yuan (the price may fluctuate due to exchange rates). The ingredients of the two drugs are basically the same, but the manufacturers are different, and patients can choose by themselves.