ObesityWeek® 2025 (Atlanta, USA; 4–7 November) explored obesity as a chronic disease driving numerous health complications, emphasizing the need for integrated management and an obesity-first approach to care.1 The discussions focused on cardiovascular-kidney-metabolic (CKM) health, highlighting that risk stratification and treatment should address metabolic, renal, and cardiovascular domains together rather than separately.
In keynote sessions, Dr Chiadi Ndumele (Johns Hopkins University) highlighted the interrelatedness of metabolic risk factors – obesity and diabetes, chronic kidney disease, and cardiovascular disease, providing insights into the underlying mechanisms of CKM health. Meanwhile, Dr David Lefer (Louisiana State University) urged clinicians to rewrite the playbook for heart failure, emphasising that low dose glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) agonists are proving efficacious for cardiometabolic and CV disease, independent of their anti-obesity actions.
For cardiologists, the message was clear: obesity treatment is cardiovascular prevention.
Oral GLP-1 receptor agonist shows robust cardiometabolic effects
Among the most anticipated data was the OASIS-4 (NCT05564117) programme evaluating the oral, once-daily GLP-1 receptor agonist, semaglutide 25 mg. Four new analyses were presented at the conference, extending the clinical trial findings from OASIS-4 beyond weight loss.2
A cardiometabolic post hoc analysis showed that in participants with pre-diabetes, 71% receiving semaglutide achieved normal blood glucose at 64 weeks, compared with 33% in the placebo group. Furthermore, patients treated with oral semaglutide were more likely to achieve ≥15% body weight reduction, with these patients having the greatest improvements across glycaemic parameters and CV risk factors.
Other findings included data showing that oral therapy achieved weight loss, metabolic, and quality-of-life outcomes comparable to injectable semaglutide, with the added convenience of oral administration for patients.
Additional analyses from the OASIS 4 and STEP trials (NCT03548935) highlighted the broad benefits of semaglutide. Weight loss was significant across menopause stages, with pre-, peri-, and post-menopausal women losing an average of 18.2%, 15%, and 15.7% of body weight, respectively. In patients with obesity and low baseline physical function, oral semaglutide 25 mg led to meaningful improvements in physical function in 77.3% of participants, compared with 42.9% with placebo.
The abstracts were presented at ObesityWeek® 2025; 04–07 November 2025; Atlanta, Georgia: (1) Rubino D, Birkhan O, Garvey W, et al. Improvements in glycemic parameters and cardiovascular risk factors with oral semaglutide 25 mg. (2) Smith I, Ivkovic M, Plotkin M, et al. Oral vs. injectable semaglutide: An indirect treatment comparison of weight loss outcomes. (3) Rubino D, Birkhan O, Garvey W, et al. Efficacy of oral semaglutide 25 mg in people with overweight or obesity and poor physical function. (4) Andrade M, Dunsmoor-Su R, Huvinen E et al. Semaglutide reduces body weight regardless of menopause status: STEP and OASIS 4 post hoc analysis.
Dual-pathway therapy enhances cardiometabolic outcomes
Further analyses presented at ObesityWeek® included a post-hoc analyses of the phase 3 REDEFINE 1 trial (NCT05567796), investigating once-weekly, subcutaneous cagrilintide–semaglutide in adults with overweight or obesity.3 Cagrilintide–semaglutide is a fixed-dose combination of cagrilintide 2.4 mg and semaglutide 2.4 mg, combining the effects of a long-acting amylin analogue with a GLP-1 receptor agonist.
The post-hoc analysis also focused on cardiovascular risk factors, including hypertension and systemic inflammation. Results showed greater reductions in systolic blood pressure with cagrilintide–semaglutide (-10.9 mmHg) at 68 weeks, compared with semaglutide (-8.8 mmHg) and placebo (-2.1 mmHg), with 40% of the cagrilintide–semaglutide group able to to reduce or stop their blood pressure medications.
Those treated with cagrilintide–semaglutide also had a 68.9% reduction in the inflammatory marker high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, greater than the 55.4% reduction with semaglutide and 16.0% reduction with placebo. Finally, a smaller proportion of patients receiving cagrilintide–semaglutide were at intermediate-to-high risk of developing atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) over the next 10 years.
The data indicate potential additive effects on metabolic and vascular parameters, highlighting multi-hormonal modulation as a promising strategy in cardiometabolic disease management.
The abstracts were presented at ObesityWeek® 2025; 04–07 November 2025; Atlanta, Georgia: (1) Verma S, Böttcher M, Brown P, et al. CagriSema Reduces Blood Pressure in Adults with Overweight or Obesity: The REDEFINE 1 Trial. (2) Taub PR, Blüher M, Böttcher M, et al. CagriSema Reduces hsCRP in Adults with Overweight or Obesity: The REDEFINE 1 Trial. (3) Verma S, Böttcher M, Brown P, et al. CagriSema Reduces Predicted ASCVD Risk in Adults with Overweight or Obesity: The REDEFINE 1 Trial.
Next-generation dual agonists demonstrate early promise
Findings from an exploratory analysis of a phase 2 study investigating VK2735, a dual GLP-1 and glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP) receptor agonist, also drew attention. In the 13-week VENTURE trial (NCT06828055), participants receiving the dual agonist achieved improvements in cardiometabolic parameters, with a reduced prevalence of prediabetes and metabolic syndrome. Among those with pre-diabetes, 78% of the VK2735 group returned to normal glucose levels, compared with 29% in the placebo group.
VK2735 is progressing toward a phase 3 clinical trial, with details of the VANQUISH-1 study (NCT07104500) design also presented at the conference.
The abstracts were presented at ObesityWeek® 2025; 04–07 November 2025; Atlanta, Georgia: (1) Modesto K. VANQUISH-1 Study Design: Phase 3 Trial of Subcutaneous VK2735 in Adults with Overweight or Obesity. (2) Bays H. Impact of Subcutaneous VK2735 on Weight, Prediabetes, and Cardiometabolic Status: The VENTURE Study.
ObesityWeek® 2025 underscored the growing focus on cardiometabolic health in obesity research. Emerging therapies, including oral GLP-1 receptor agonists and dual-pathway agents, demonstrated meaningful improvements in weight, glycaemic control, blood pressure, and inflammatory markers.
For cardiologists, these data reinforce the link between metabolic regulation and cardiovascular risk factors. While long-term cardiovascular outcomes remain under investigation, the evidence suggests that these therapies may influence mechanisms relevant to hypertension, insulin resistance, and systemic inflammation. Continued research will clarify their role in cardiovascular care and how they might complement traditional risk-factor management.
References
- ObesityWeek®. Available at: https://obesityweek.org/ (accessed 7 November 2025).
- PR Newswire. Novo Nordisk presents four new analyses on oral semaglutide 25 mg (Wegovy® in a pill*) at ObesityWeek® 2025, including demonstrated reductions in cardiovascular risk factors. 2025. [Press release]. Available at: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/novo-nordisk-presents-four-new-analyses-on-oral-semaglutide-25-mg-wegovy-in-a-pill-at-obesityweek-2025-including-demonstrated-reductions-in-cardiovascular-risk-factors-302605329.html (accessed 7 November 2025).
- PR Newswire. Novo Nordisk’s CagriSema was associated with significant reduction in blood pressure and showed anti-inflammatory effects while reducing the proportion of patients at risk of developing heart disease over time in new analyses at ObesityWeek®. 2025. [Press release]. Available at: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/novo-nordisks-cagrisema-was-associated-with-significant-reduction-in-blood-pressure-and-showed-anti-inflammatory-effects-while-reducing-the-proportion-of-patients-at-risk-of-developing-heart-disease-over-time-in-new-analyses-at-o-302607596.html (accessed 7 November 2025).
- Viking Therapeutics. Viking Therapeutics Highlights Clinical Data from VK2735 Obesity Program in Presentation at ObesityWeek® 2025. 2025. [Press release]. Available at: https://ir.vikingtherapeutics.com/2025-11-06-Viking-Therapeutics-Highlights-Clinical-Data-from-VK2735-Obesity-Program-in-Presentation-at-ObesityWeek-R-2025 (accessed 7 November 2025).
Cite: ObesityWeek® 2025: A new era for cardiovascular-kidney-metabolic health. touchCARDIO. 7 November 2025.
Editor: Victoria Smith, Senior Content Editor.
Disclosures: This article was created by the touchCARDIO team utilizing AI as an editorial tool (ChatGPT (GPT-4o) [Large language model]. https://chat.openai.com/chat.) The content was developed and edited by human editors. No funding was received in the publication of this article.
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