User:Mr. Ibrahem/Liraglutide

Liraglutide, sold under the brand name Victoza among others, is a medication used to treat diabetes mellitus type 2 and obesity. In diabetes it is a less preferred agent compared to metformin. Its effects on long-term health outcomes like heart disease and life expectancy are unclear. In obesity if after 12 weeks less than 5% of body weight is lost it is recommended the medication be stopped. It is given by injection under the skin.

Common side effects include low blood sugar, nausea, dizziness, abdominal pain, and pain at the site of injection. Other serious side effects may include medullary thyroid cancer, angioedema, pancreatitis, gallbladder disease, and kidney problems. Use in pregnancy and breastfeeding is of unclear safety. Liraglutide is a glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist (GLP-1 receptor agonist) also known as incretin mimetics. It works by increasing insulin release from the pancreas and decreases excessive glucagon release.

Liraglutide was approved for medical use in Europe in 2009 and in the United States in 2010. A month supply in the United Kingdom costs the NHS about £79 as of 2019. In the United States the wholesale cost of this amount is about US$98. In 2017, it was the 163rd most commonly prescribed medication in the United States, with more than three million prescriptions.