HIV patients with belly fat who took tesamorelin were more likely to lose at least 8% of their visceral fat than those who took a placebo.

Scientific Claim

Tesamorelin treatment in HIV-infected patients with abdominal obesity was associated with a higher rate of ≥8% VAT reduction compared to placebo (69% vs. 33%, P < 0.001).

Original Statement

“In the combined Phase III trials, 69% of subjects receiving tesamorelin achieved VAT reduction ≥ 8%, compared to 33% of those receiving placebo (P < 0.001).”

From study:Visceral fat reduction with tesamorelin is associated with improved liver enzymes in HIV

Evidence Quality Assessment

Claim Status

appropriately stated

Study Design Support

Design supports claim

Appropriate Language Strength

association

Can only show association/correlation

Assessment Explanation

The claim uses 'associated with' to describe the treatment effect, correctly reflecting the study's design limitations despite being an RCT.

Evidence from Studies

Supporting (1)

Visceral fat reduction with tesamorelin is associated with improved liver enzymes in HIV

Randomized Controlled Trial

Human

2017 Oct 23

Contradicting (0)

No contradicting evidence found

Source Study

Visceral fat reduction with tesamorelin is associated with improved liver enzymes in HIV

Score: 62

DOI: 10.1097/QAD.0000000000001614

Similar Assertions

HIV patients with belly fat who took tesamorelin had a 69% chance of losing at least 8% visceral fat, while those on placebo had only a 33% chance, showing a clear benefit from the drug.

92%

This drug only helped people whose belly fat went down a lot—so if your belly fat didn’t shrink, we don’t know if it would help your muscles.

90%

HIV patients with belly fat who responded to tesamorelin saw better lean muscle quality in their abdominal and rectus muscles, with improvements of 1.39 and 1.78 units respectively compared to placebo after 26 weeks.

89%

HIV patients with belly fat who responded to tesamorelin had more lean muscle mass in all four trunk muscles, with increases between 0.64 and 1.08 cm² compared to placebo after 26 weeks.

88%

For HIV patients with belly fat who responded to tesamorelin, the drug was linked to better muscle density in four trunk muscles, with improvements between 1.56 and 4.86 units compared to placebo after 26 weeks.

88%