PIONEER REAL Japan: Primary results from a multicenter, prospective, real-world study of oral semaglutide in adults with type 2 diabetes in Japanese clinical practice

Aims/Introduction

PIONEER REAL Japan was a non-interventional prospective study of oral semaglutide in adults with type 2 diabetes in Japanese clinical practice.

Materials and Methods

Adults naïve to injectable glucose-lowering therapies initiated oral semaglutide in routine clinical practice and were followed for 34–44 weeks. The primary endpoint was change in glycated hemoglobin (HbA_1c) from baseline to end of study; the co-primary endpoint was number of adverse events (AEs). Secondary endpoints included change in bodyweight from baseline to end of study. Analyses were also carried out for subgroups aged <75 and ≥75 years.

Results

A total of 624 participants initiated oral semaglutide; 578 completed the study. Mean baseline HbA_1c and bodyweight were 7.7% and 72.4 kg, respectively. At end of study, estimated change (95% confidence interval [CI]) in HbA_1c from baseline was −0.7 percentage points (−0.77, −0.61) overall, −0.8 percentage points (−0.86, −0.67) in the <75 years subgroup and −0.5 percentage points (−0.68, −0.41) in the ≥75 years subgroup (all P < 0.0001). Estimated change (95% CI) in bodyweight was −2.8 (−3.19, −2.50) kg overall, −2.9 (−3.38, −2.49) kg in the <75 years subgroup and − 2.7 (−3.18, −2.14) kg in the ≥75 years subgroup (all P < 0.0001). AEs occurred in 161 (25.8%) participants: 99 of 423 (23.4%) and 62 of 201 (30.8%) participants in the <75 and ≥75 years subgroups, respectively. Gastrointestinal AEs were the AEs most frequently leading to oral semaglutide discontinuation.

Conclusions

In routine clinical practice, HbA_1c and bodyweight were significantly reduced from baseline in adults initiating oral semaglutide, including those aged ≥75 years, with no new safety concerns.