Tirzepatide vs Liraglutide in Bone
TiLi-BONE
Comparative Investigation of Changes in Body Composition and Bone Turnover Markers in People With Obesity After Treatment With Tirzepatide Versus Liraglutide. A Prospective Cohort Study.
1 other identifier
observational
72
1 country
1
Brief Summary
This prospective cohort study investigates the effects of tirzepatide versus liraglutide on bone turnover markers and body composition in adults with class 3 obesity, characterised by Body Mass Index (BMI) ≥40 kg/m². Participants will be followed for 6 months with assessments at baseline, 3 and 6. The primary outcome is the change in bone resorption marker C-terminal telopeptide of type I collagen (CTX) at 3 months. Secondary outcomes include changes in body weight, BMI, bone mineral density (BMD), and body composition. The study aims to clarify the differential impact of weight loss achieved through tirzepatide versus liraglutide on bone metabolism and body composition in adults with obesity.
Trial Health
Trial Health Score
Automated assessment based on enrollment pace, timeline, and geographic reach
participants targeted
Target at P50-P75 for all trials
Started May 2025
1 active site
Health score is calculated from publicly available data and should be used for screening purposes only.
Trial Relationships
Click on a node to explore related trials.
Study Timeline
Key milestones and dates
Study Start
First participant enrolled
May 23, 2025
CompletedFirst Submitted
Initial submission to the registry
June 30, 2025
CompletedFirst Posted
Study publicly available on registry
July 30, 2025
CompletedPrimary Completion
Last participant's last visit for primary outcome
December 30, 2026
ExpectedStudy Completion
Last participant's last visit for all outcomes
December 30, 2026
January 21, 2026
January 1, 2026
1.6 years
June 30, 2025
January 17, 2026
Conditions
Keywords
Outcome Measures
Primary Outcomes (1)
Change in serum CTX concentration
Evaluation of changes in the bone resorption marker CTX at 3 months after intervention initiation in participants treated with tirzepatide versus liraglutide
Baseline and 3 months after intervention initiation
Secondary Outcomes (4)
Change in body weight
Baseline and 6 months after intervention initiation
Change in Body Mass Index (BMI)
Baseline and 6 months after intervention initiation
Change in Bone Mineral Density (BMD)
Baseline and 6 months after intervention initiation
Change in Body Composition Parameters
Baseline and 6 months after intervention initiation
Study Arms (2)
Liraglutide
Patients with obesity receiving liraglutide (up to maximum dose of 3mg daily)
Tirzepatide
Patients with obesity receiving tirzepatide (up to dose of 10-15mg weekly)
Eligibility Criteria
This study involves patients with a body mass index (BMI) greater than 40 who either present for weight loss management at endocrinology or obesity clinics, or who are referred to sleep disorder centers due to obstructive sleep apnea syndrome requiring CPAP therapy, where weight loss intervention is consequently recommended.
You may qualify if:
- Adults aged between 30 and 65 years
- BMI ≥40 kg/m²
You may not qualify if:
- Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) and type 1 Diabetes Mellitus (T1DM)
- Chronic kidney disease
- Liver failure
- Heart failure
- Malignancy coexistence
- Previous bariatric or gastrointestinal surgery involving intestinal bypass
- Uncontrolled hypo/hyperthyroidism
- Uncontrolled hypo/hyperparathyroidism
- Pregnancy and lactation
- Recent fracture (within 2 years)
- Rare Metabolic Bone Diseases (e.g., Paget's disease of bone, fibrous dysplasia, osteopetrosis)
- Inflammatory arthritis
- Medications which can affect bone markers: bone-anabolic agents, antiresorptive agents, antiandrogenic agents, vitamin K antagonists, antipsychotic agents, contraceptives, glucocorticoids (oral), methotrexate, thiazides, aromatase inhibitors etc)
- Hemolytic anemia
Contact the study team to confirm eligibility.
Sponsors & Collaborators
- National and Kapodistrian University of Athenslead
- Laikο General Hospital, Athenscollaborator
- Athens Medical Centercollaborator
- Sotiria General Hospitalcollaborator
- 251 Hellenic Air Force & VA General Hospitalcollaborator
- Evangelismos Hospitalcollaborator
Study Sites (1)
Laiko General Hospital
Athens, Attica, 11527, Greece
Related Publications (36)
Greenblatt MB, Tsai JN, Wein MN. Bone Turnover Markers in the Diagnosis and Monitoring of Metabolic Bone Disease. Clin Chem. 2017 Feb;63(2):464-474. doi: 10.1373/clinchem.2016.259085. Epub 2016 Dec 9.
PMID: 27940448RESULTKatsarou A, Panagiotakos D, Zafeiropoulou A, Vryonis M, Skoularigis I, Tryposkiadis F, Papageorgiou C. Validation of a Greek version of PSS-14; a global measure of perceived stress. Cent Eur J Public Health. 2012 Jun;20(2):104-9. doi: 10.21101/cejph.a3698.
PMID: 22966732RESULTPappa E, Kontodimopoulos N, Niakas D. Validating and norming of the Greek SF-36 Health Survey. Qual Life Res. 2005 Jun;14(5):1433-8. doi: 10.1007/s11136-004-6014-y.
PMID: 16047519RESULTTsekoura M, Billis E, Tsepis E, Lampropoulou S, Beaudart C, Bruyere O, Yilmaz O, Bahat G, Gliatis J. Cross-cultural adaptation and validation of the Greek Version of the SARC-F for evaluating sarcopenia in Greek older adults. J Musculoskelet Neuronal Interact. 2020 Dec 1;20(4):505-512.
PMID: 33265078RESULTDenarie D, Constant E, Thomas T, Marotte H. Could biomarkers of bone, cartilage or synovium turnover be used for relapse prediction in rheumatoid arthritis patients? Mediators Inflamm. 2014;2014:537324. doi: 10.1155/2014/537324. Epub 2014 Mar 12.
PMID: 24744505RESULTFarup PG. Changes in bone turnover markers 6-12 months after bariatric surgery. Sci Rep. 2024 Jun 27;14(1):14844. doi: 10.1038/s41598-024-65952-y.
PMID: 38937532RESULTWu C, Kato TS, Pronschinske K, Qiu S, Naka Y, Takayama H, Schulze-Spate U, Cremers S, Shane E, Mancini D, Schulze PC. Dynamics of bone turnover markers in patients with heart failure and following haemodynamic improvement through ventricular assist device implantation. Eur J Heart Fail. 2012 Dec;14(12):1356-65. doi: 10.1093/eurjhf/hfs138. Epub 2012 Sep 18.
PMID: 22989867RESULTWoodcock A. Effects of inhaled corticosteroids on bone density and metabolism. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 1998 Apr;101(4 Pt 2):S456-9. doi: 10.1016/s0091-6749(98)70159-9.
PMID: 9563372RESULTWeerasinghe DK, Hodge JM, Pasco JA, Samarasinghe RM, Azimi Manavi B, Williams LJ. Antipsychotic-induced bone loss: the role of dopamine, serotonin and adrenergic receptor signalling. Front Cell Dev Biol. 2023 May 25;11:1184550. doi: 10.3389/fcell.2023.1184550. eCollection 2023.
PMID: 37305679RESULTLoncar G, Cvetinovic N, Lainscak M, Isakovic A, von Haehling S. Bone in heart failure. J Cachexia Sarcopenia Muscle. 2020 Apr;11(2):381-393. doi: 10.1002/jcsm.12516. Epub 2020 Feb 22.
PMID: 32087616RESULTVasikaran S, Eastell R, Bruyere O, Foldes AJ, Garnero P, Griesmacher A, McClung M, Morris HA, Silverman S, Trenti T, Wahl DA, Cooper C, Kanis JA; IOF-IFCC Bone Marker Standards Working Group. Markers of bone turnover for the prediction of fracture risk and monitoring of osteoporosis treatment: a need for international reference standards. Osteoporos Int. 2011 Feb;22(2):391-420. doi: 10.1007/s00198-010-1501-1. Epub 2010 Dec 24.
PMID: 21184054RESULTSchini M, Vilaca T, Gossiel F, Salam S, Eastell R. Bone Turnover Markers: Basic Biology to Clinical Applications. Endocr Rev. 2023 May 8;44(3):417-473. doi: 10.1210/endrev/bnac031.
PMID: 36510335RESULTFilella X, Guanabens N. Clinical use of bone markers: a challenge to variability. Adv Lab Med. 2023 Aug 28;5(1):7-14. doi: 10.1515/almed-2023-0092. eCollection 2024 Mar.
PMID: 38634081RESULTLv F, Cai X, Lin C, Yang W, Ji L. Effects of Semaglutide and Tirzepatide on Bone Metabolism in Type 2 Diabetic Mice. Pharmaceuticals (Basel). 2024 Dec 9;17(12):1655. doi: 10.3390/ph17121655.
PMID: 39770498RESULTIepsen EW, Lundgren JR, Hartmann B, Pedersen O, Hansen T, Jorgensen NR, Jensen JE, Holst JJ, Madsbad S, Torekov SS. GLP-1 Receptor Agonist Treatment Increases Bone Formation and Prevents Bone Loss in Weight-Reduced Obese Women. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2015 Aug;100(8):2909-17. doi: 10.1210/jc.2015-1176. Epub 2015 Jun 4.
PMID: 26043228RESULTHygum K, Harslof T, Jorgensen NR, Rungby J, Pedersen SB, Langdahl BL. Bone resorption is unchanged by liraglutide in type 2 diabetes patients: A randomised controlled trial. Bone. 2020 Mar;132:115197. doi: 10.1016/j.bone.2019.115197. Epub 2019 Dec 20.
PMID: 31870634RESULTYang L, Yang J, Pan T, Zhong X. Liraglutide increases bone formation and inhibits bone resorption in rats with glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis. J Endocrinol Invest. 2019 Sep;42(9):1125-1131. doi: 10.1007/s40618-019-01034-5. Epub 2019 Apr 6.
PMID: 30955181RESULTCheng Y, Liu P, Xiang Q, Liang J, Chen H, Zhang H, Yang L. Glucagon-like peptide-1 attenuates diabetes-associated osteoporosis in ZDF rat, possibly through the RAGE pathway. BMC Musculoskelet Disord. 2022 May 17;23(1):465. doi: 10.1186/s12891-022-05396-5.
PMID: 35581617RESULTWen B, Zhao L, Zhao H, Wang X. Liraglutide exerts a bone-protective effect in ovariectomized rats with streptozotocin-induced diabetes by inhibiting osteoclastogenesis. Exp Ther Med. 2018 Jun;15(6):5077-5083. doi: 10.3892/etm.2018.6043. Epub 2018 Apr 10.
PMID: 29805533RESULTFathy MA, Anbaig A, Aljafil R, El-Sayed SF, Abdelnour HM, Ahmed MM, Abdelghany EMA, Alnasser SM, Hassan SMA, Shalaby AM. Effect of Liraglutide on Osteoporosis in a Rat Model of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: A Histological, Immunohistochemical, and Biochemical Study. Microsc Microanal. 2023 Dec 21;29(6):2053-2067. doi: 10.1093/micmic/ozad102.
PMID: 37832035RESULTStefanakis K, Kokkorakis M, Mantzoros CS. The impact of weight loss on fat-free mass, muscle, bone and hematopoiesis health: Implications for emerging pharmacotherapies aiming at fat reduction and lean mass preservation. Metabolism. 2024 Dec;161:156057. doi: 10.1016/j.metabol.2024.156057. Epub 2024 Oct 30.
PMID: 39481534RESULTBatsis JA. Obesity in the Older Adult: Special Issue. J Nutr Gerontol Geriatr. 2019 Jan-Mar;38(1):1-5. doi: 10.1080/21551197.2018.1564197. Epub 2019 Feb 26. No abstract available.
PMID: 30806583RESULTSaad RK, Ghezzawi M, Habli D, Alami RS, Chakhtoura M. Fracture risk following bariatric surgery: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Osteoporos Int. 2022 Mar;33(3):511-526. doi: 10.1007/s00198-021-06206-9. Epub 2022 Jan 5.
PMID: 34988627RESULTWright CS, Li J, Campbell WW. Effects of Dietary Protein Quantity on Bone Quantity following Weight Loss: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. Adv Nutr. 2019 Nov 1;10(6):1089-1107. doi: 10.1093/advances/nmz058.
PMID: 31301138RESULTZibellini J, Seimon RV, Lee CM, Gibson AA, Hsu MS, Shapses SA, Nguyen TV, Sainsbury A. Does Diet-Induced Weight Loss Lead to Bone Loss in Overweight or Obese Adults? A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Clinical Trials. J Bone Miner Res. 2015 Dec;30(12):2168-78. doi: 10.1002/jbmr.2564. Epub 2015 Jun 16.
PMID: 26012544RESULTSzulc P, Naylor K, Hoyle NR, Eastell R, Leary ET; National Bone Health Alliance Bone Turnover Marker Project. Use of CTX-I and PINP as bone turnover markers: National Bone Health Alliance recommendations to standardize sample handling and patient preparation to reduce pre-analytical variability. Osteoporos Int. 2017 Sep;28(9):2541-2556. doi: 10.1007/s00198-017-4082-4. Epub 2017 Jun 19.
PMID: 28631236RESULTPatel N, Ganti L. The Treatment and Monitoring of Osteoporosis using Bone Turnover Markers. Orthop Rev (Pavia). 2025 Jan 6;17:127772. doi: 10.52965/001c.127772. eCollection 2025.
PMID: 39790440RESULTHunter GR, Plaisance EP, Fisher G. Weight loss and bone mineral density. Curr Opin Endocrinol Diabetes Obes. 2014 Oct;21(5):358-62. doi: 10.1097/MED.0000000000000087.
PMID: 25105997RESULTRinonapoli G, Pace V, Ruggiero C, Ceccarini P, Bisaccia M, Meccariello L, Caraffa A. Obesity and Bone: A Complex Relationship. Int J Mol Sci. 2021 Dec 20;22(24):13662. doi: 10.3390/ijms222413662.
PMID: 34948466RESULTLi H, Qiu J, Gao Z, Li C, Chu J. Association between waist-to-height ratio and osteoporosis in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey: a cross-sectional study. Front Med (Lausanne). 2024 Dec 18;11:1486611. doi: 10.3389/fmed.2024.1486611. eCollection 2024.
PMID: 39744530RESULTLiu Y, Liu Y, Huang Y, Le S, Jiang H, Ruan B, Ao X, Shi X, Fu X, Wang S. The effect of overweight or obesity on osteoporosis: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Clin Nutr. 2023 Dec;42(12):2457-2467. doi: 10.1016/j.clnu.2023.10.013. Epub 2023 Oct 18.
PMID: 37925778RESULTHou J, He C, He W, Yang M, Luo X, Li C. Obesity and Bone Health: A Complex Link. Front Cell Dev Biol. 2020 Dec 21;8:600181. doi: 10.3389/fcell.2020.600181. eCollection 2020.
PMID: 33409277RESULTGkastaris K, Goulis DG, Potoupnis M, Anastasilakis AD, Kapetanos G. Obesity, osteoporosis and bone metabolism. J Musculoskelet Neuronal Interact. 2020 Sep 1;20(3):372-381.
PMID: 32877973RESULTCauley JA. Public health impact of osteoporosis. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. 2013 Oct;68(10):1243-51. doi: 10.1093/gerona/glt093. Epub 2013 Jul 31.
PMID: 23902935RESULTRhee EJ. The Influence of Obesity and Metabolic Health on Vascular Health. Endocrinol Metab (Seoul). 2022 Feb;37(1):1-8. doi: 10.3803/EnM.2022.101. Epub 2022 Feb 28.
PMID: 35255597RESULTEngin A. The Definition and Prevalence of Obesity and Metabolic Syndrome. Adv Exp Med Biol. 2017;960:1-17. doi: 10.1007/978-3-319-48382-5_1.
PMID: 28585193RESULT
Biospecimen
blood (serum and plasma)
MeSH Terms
Conditions
Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)
Central Study Contacts
Study Design
- Study Type
- observational
- Observational Model
- COHORT
- Time Perspective
- PROSPECTIVE
- Sponsor Type
- OTHER
- Responsible Party
- PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
- PI Title
- Consultant Endocrinologist in the 1st Department of Propaedeutic and Internal Medicine, Medical School of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA) and Deputy in Charge of (C.E.R.E.D) - Disorders of Calcium and Phosphate Metabolism
Study Record Dates
First Submitted
June 30, 2025
First Posted
July 30, 2025
Study Start
May 23, 2025
Primary Completion (Estimated)
December 30, 2026
Study Completion (Estimated)
December 30, 2026
Last Updated
January 21, 2026
Record last verified: 2026-01
Data Sharing
- IPD Sharing
- Will not share
Due to participant privacy concerns and institutional policies, individual participant data will not be shared outside the research team