GLP-1 Evidence

Not medical advice. A record of published research and our assessments of it. The limits

Effects of combined metformin and semaglutide therapy on body weight, metabolic parameters, and reproductive outcomes in overweight/obese women with polycystic ovary syndrome: a prospective, randomized, controlled, open-label clinical trial

Design
Randomized trial · 80 participants · Biomarker outcome
Match to healthy normal-weight adults aged 55–75
Different population[Auto] Participants had obesity/overweight (age/BMI not reported in abstract).
Could weight loss explain it?
Possibly[Auto] Participants had obesity and/or type 2 diabetes and the abstract does not separate direct drug effects from weight loss or glycaemic improvement.
Study tier
Study tier 3[Auto] Small or short randomized trial (auto-provisional).
Assessment
Version 1 · automatic, not yet reviewed by a person · Sep 13, 2026

Study facts come from the paper. Population match, weight-loss explanation and study tier are our judgments, made against the reference group of healthy normal-weight adults aged 55–75.

[Auto, unreviewed; quoted from abstract conclusions] Compared to MET monotherapy, combination therapy with semaglutide and MET significantly reduced body weight, improved insulin resistance, decreased inflammatory markers, alleviated and menstrual irregularities and increased natural pregnancy rates in overweight/obese women with PCOS.

01Findings

What the study reported

Drugs
Semaglutide
Dose
1000 mg
Treatment duration
16 weeks
Comparator
a combination of semaglutide and MET
Primary outcome
Not extracted
Effect
Not extracted
95% confidence interval
Not extracted
Follow-up
16 weeks
Adverse events
Not extracted
Limitations
Auto-classified from abstract only; effect estimates, adverse events and limitations not extracted. Requires manual review.

Who was studied

Obesity status
obesity/overweight present (all or most)
Sample size
80

Study quality details

Study design
Randomized controlled trial
Sample size
80
Randomization
yes
Blinding
open-label
Comparator
not stated
Follow up duration
16 weeks
Outcome type
biomarker
Replication
not assessed (auto)
Consistency with other evidence
not assessed (auto)
Population applicability
INDIRECT
Statistical precision
not extracted
Risk of bias
not assessed (auto)
Funding conflicts
unclear
Peer review status
yes
02Funding

Funding and conflicts

Funding
not reported in abstract
Industry funded
Unclear
Manufacturer
None identified
Sponsor role
not reported in abstract
Author conflicts
Declarations. Ethics approval and consent to participate: The study was approved by the hospital’s ethics committee of the Second Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University (Approval No. 2024204) and registered on Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (ChiCTR2400090908) in October 15, 2024. All participants received written and oral information and signed informed consent before any examination. Consent for publication: Not applicable. Disclaimers: Any opinions or recommendations discussed are solely those of the author(s). Source(s)of support: Chongqing medical scientific research project (Joint project of Chongqing Health Commission and Science and Technology Bureau) (2025MSXM106), the First batch of key Disciplines on Public Health in Chongqing, the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grants 81501199 to C.W.), the Natural Science Foundation Project of Chongqing CSTC (cstc2017jcyjAX0016 to C.W. and CSTB2022NSCQ-MSX1008 to C.W.). Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests.
Independent replication
unknown

Funding is shown on every study and never used to score it.

04Source

The source, as retrieved

Abstract

[OBJECTIVE] This study aimed to assess the effects of metformin (MET) monotherapy versus a combination of semaglutide and MET on weight, metabolism, reproductive function, and inflammatory markers in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). [METHODS] A total of 100 overweight or obese women with PCOS diagnosed according to the Rotterdam criteria were randomly assigned to two groups: MET (1000 mg twice daily [BID] for 16 weeks) and combination therapy (COM) (1000  mg MET BID plus 1- mg semaglutide once weekly [QW] for 16 weeks). Primary outcomes, assessed at Week 0 and Week 16, included changes in anthropometric measures related to obesity, while the secondary outcomes included alterations in reproductive hormone levels, glucose and lipid metabolism, and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels, Between Weeks 16 and 40, all participants received metformin monotherapy (1000 mg BID) to evaluate pregnancy outcomes. [RESULT] A total of 80 participants (80%) completed the study. After 16 weeks of intervention, the COM group exhibited significantly greater reductions in body weight, BMI, and waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) compared to the MET group (all P < 0.01). The COM group experienced an average weight loss of 6.09 ± 3.34 kg, while the MET group lost only 2.25 ± 4.27 kg. The COM group also demonstrated greater improvements in testosterone (TEST), Chinese visceral adiposity index (CVAI), and CRP levels compared to the MET group. Additionally, the COM group showed higher rates of menstrual cycle recovery than the MET group. From weeks 16 to 40, the COM group demonstrated a significantly higher natural pregnancy rate than the MET group (35% vs. 15%, P < 0.05). [CONCLUSION] Compared to MET monotherapy, combination therapy with semaglutide and MET significantly reduced body weight, improved insulin resistance, decreased inflammatory markers, alleviated and menstrual irregularities and increased natural pregnancy rates in overweight/obese women with PCOS. [CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION] chictr.org.cn ID: ChiCTR2400090908 (Registration time: 2024-10-15).

Where this record came from

SourceRetrievedIdentifier
pubmedSep 13, 202640713699
first ingestion