Effect of metformin versus metformin plus liraglutide on gonadal and metabolic profiles in overweight patients with polycystic ovary syndrome.
Level 2 - randomized trial
Individual randomized controlled trial
PubMed 36060969 · doi:10.3389/fendo.2022.945609
What was done
Sixty overweight patients with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) recruited between January 2021 and January 2022 at Shengjing Hospital of China Medical University were randomly assigned to 12 weeks of metformin (MET) monotherapy or metformin plus liraglutide (COM). Menstrual cycle changes, anthropometric measurements, gonadal hormone profiles, and oral glucose tolerance tests were evaluated at baseline and at 12 weeks.
What was found
Fifty-two participants completed the study and eight were lost to follow-up. The abstract provides no numerical data, confidence intervals, or p-values. Both groups showed improvements from baseline in menstrual cycles, anthropometrics, and glucose metabolism, with no statistically significant difference between groups. MET plus liraglutide improved total testosterone, sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG), free androgen index (FAI), luteinizing hormone (LH), follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), and progesterone compared to baseline, whereas MET monotherapy improved SHBG, FAI, and estradiol. MET plus liraglutide was reported to improve total testosterone, SHBG, FAI, LH, and progesterone more effectively than MET monotherapy, while no significant differences between groups were observed for estradiol, FSH, or the LH/FSH ratio.
Why it matters
Combining a GLP-1 receptor agonist with metformin may offer greater benefit for hyperandrogenemia and gonadal dysfunction in overweight patients with PCOS than metformin alone, even when short-term metabolic improvements are similar.
Limits
The abstract provides no raw numbers, effect estimates, or statistical values. The trial was small (n=60 randomized, 52 completed), short (12 weeks), and single-center. Blinding was not described, and clinical endpoints such as ovulation or live birth rates were not measured.
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- contradicts A small study found that GLP-1 receptor agonists can exacerbate androgen excess symptoms.