(C-105) Characterizing Demographics and Comorbidities for New Initiator GLP-1 Patients, 2016 – 2023

Background: Interest in the use of glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) agonist therapies for conditions outside of obesity and diabetes has grown in recent years. Currently, clinical trials are in progress assessing the efficacy of GLP-1 agonist therapies for a variety of conditions – including chronic kidney disease (CKD), heart failure, and autoimmune conditions.

Objectives: This study aimed to characterize new-initiator GLP-1 patients by demographics, product, and comorbidities from 2016 to 2023.

Methods: Using IQVIA’s PharMetrics Plus (PM) dataset, we included all adult patients (≥18 years) newly initiated on GLP-1 therapies (albiglutide , dulaglutide, exenatide, liraglutide, lixisenatide, semaglutide, and tirzepatide) from 2016 to 2023. We assessed the number of new patients per year, stratified by patient characteristics (age, sex), index product, and comorbidities (diagnosis within one year before index prescription).

Results: We identified 1,512,645 new GLP-1 agonist patients from 2016 to 2023. The number of new patients per year remained relatively stable from 2016 to 2020 (average year-over-year change of 7%) but increased dramatically from 2021 to 2023 (+270%). This increase in new patients was largely driven by a six-fold increase in semaglutide use (613%) from 2020 to 2023 . Overall, semaglutide (48%) and dulaglutide (32%) were the most common GLP-1 agonist. Most prescriptions were for female patients (60%) and those 40-70 (74%). Within the year prior to their initial prescription , 73% of patients had diabetes, 44% had obesity, 17% had obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), and 11% had CKD. Slightly more female patients were on semaglutide (50% vs 45%), while slightly more male patients were on dulaglutide (36% vs 29%). Greater proportions of patients on dulaglutide (77%), exenatide (70%), lixisenatide (82%) had diabetes, compared to semaglutide (63%) and tirzepatide (67%).

Conclusions: The significant increase in GLP-1 agonist prescribing over time is primarily driven by semaglutide. Female patients on GLP-1 agonists are more likely to have obesity and autoimmune conditions, while male patients are more likely to have diabetes, CKD, and OSA, trends consistent with the overall US population.