Teenagers dealing with overweight or obesity alongside asthma who began treatment with GLP-1 receptor agonists demonstrated a substantially reduced likelihood of experiencing asthma flare-ups when compared to those who did not receive these medications.
In a detailed retrospective cohort analysis involving 1,070 individuals aged 12 to 18 years, just 5.4% of the participants using GLP-1 agents encountered an acute asthma exacerbation over the course of a 12-month observation period. This figure contrasted sharply with the 10.7% rate observed among the control group not on GLP-1 therapy, yielding a relative risk (RR) of 0.51 (95% CI 0.33-0.78, P=0.002). These results were presented by Lin-Shien Fu, MD, from Taichung Veterans General Hospital in Taiwan, along with his research team.
Moreover, the group taking GLP-1 agents showed lower incidences of emergency department visits due to asthma issues (RR 0.42, 95% CI 0.19-0.95, P=0.04). They were also less likely to require prescriptions for systemic corticosteroids (RR 0.66, 95% CI 0.54-0.81, P<0.001) or inhaled short-acting beta-2 agonists (RR 0.72, 95% CI 0.62-0.84, P<0.001).
The researchers highlighted in their publication that these outcomes point toward a promising dual advantage for this specific patient group. A single category of drugs might effectively tackle both weight control and the diminished chance of asthma worsening, which could alleviate the overall load from these two prevalent and interrelated long-term health issues.
The team further elaborated that excess body weight and obesity serve as well-recognized risk factors that intensify asthma severity and increase the frequency of attacks in teenagers.
In recent years, GLP-1 receptor agonists have gained popularity as a treatment option for young people struggling with overweight or obesity. However, until this investigation, their impact on asthma management in this demographic had received minimal attention. The authors noted that although certain observational research in adults has hinted at possible advantages, the results have varied, and no targeted examinations had been conducted specifically for adolescents.
The precise nature of the connection between GLP-1 medications and improved asthma outcomes remains undetermined, particularly whether it stems primarily from weight reduction or from separate anti-inflammatory properties unrelated to body mass changes, according to the study investigators.
They pointed out that while metabolic disturbances and insulin resistance frequently accompany obesity-associated asthma, the dataset relied on BMI classifications rather than tracking individual BMI trajectories over time. Consequently, pinpointing the exact mechanism proved challenging, and the researchers advocated for forward-looking studies to discern if the breathing improvements occur separately from any weight reduction effects.
The research group drew their information from the TriNetX global federated health research network, covering the timeframe from January 2020 through July 2025. This dataset included teenagers diagnosed simultaneously with asthma and either overweight or obesity, regardless of diabetes status.
To ensure comparability, the study employed 1:1 propensity score matching, resulting in two balanced cohorts: 535 adolescents newly prescribed GLP-1 drugs and 535 others who underwent recorded non-drug-based weight management strategies. Matching accounted for initial BMI levels, demographic profiles, indicators of asthma intensity, and previous usage of medications for asthma or diabetes.
The participants had an average age of 15.8 years, with 56.8% identifying as female. In the GLP-1 cohort, 45.2% were white and 29.7% were Black. Roughly half fell into the BMI range of the 95th to 120% of the 95th percentile. Approximately one-fifth had coexisting diabetes at the start, and a quarter were on metformin therapy.
- Severe persistent asthma appeared rare in this group, affecting only 2.4%.
- The majority exhibited mild intermittent asthma (32%), mild persistent (15.5%), moderate persistent (17.4%), or unspecified asthma severity (60%).
During the 12 months leading up to the study period, asthma exacerbation rates stayed generally modest across various severity levels, remaining below 6%.
For those adolescents who did suffer at least one asthma exacerbation within the study window, the mean count of additional episodes over the ensuing 12 months showed no meaningful difference between the GLP-1 users and controls (1.83 versus 2.02 events, P=0.65).
A key caveat of the study is its predominant reliance on U.S.-sourced data, which might limit its applicability to populations in different nations. Additionally, the absence of post-treatment BMI variation data represented another shortfall.
In wrapping up, the investigators emphasized that these preliminary, hypothesis-generating results call for validation through prospective randomized clinical trials. Such trials would help confirm the effectiveness and safety profile of GLP-1 receptor agonists when used as a supplementary treatment for asthma in overweight or obese adolescents.
