Study of 155 bipolar disorder patients published in BMC Psychiatry; patients lost an average of 2.06 kg after 16 weeks, with depression scores improving significantly and no serious adverse events reported

Bukwang Pharmaceutical's headquarters. [Bukwang Pharmaceutical]
Bukwang Pharmaceutical's headquarters. [Bukwang Pharmaceutical]

Bipolar disorder patients who switched to Bukwang Pharmaceutical's Latuda (lurasidone) showed meaningful weight loss and improvement in depressive symptoms, a new study has found.

Bukwang Pharmaceutical announced Thursday that a real-world data study evaluating weight changes, improvements in depressive symptoms, and safety in patients who switched from existing antipsychotics to lurasidone had been accepted for publication in the international peer-reviewed journal BMC Psychiatry.

The study enrolled 155 adult bipolar disorder patients from 12 psychiatric clinics across South Korea who had experienced weight gain while taking existing antipsychotics — aripiprazole, quetiapine or olanzapine — for at least eight weeks before switching to lurasidone.

At the primary endpoint of 16 weeks, average body weight fell significantly from 74.49 kg before the switch to 72.43 kg afterward, a reduction of 2.06 kg (p<0.0001). Body mass index also declined from an average of 27.03 kg/m² to 26.28 kg/m², a drop of 0.76 kg/m² (p<0.0001). In all, 25.8 percent of patients lost at least 5 percent of their baseline body weight.

Particularly notable was the subgroup of patients who had switched from aripiprazole, which accounted for 83.2 percent of the total cohort. Even among those transitioning from a drug with a relatively lower metabolic burden, average weight fell by 1.99 kg, demonstrating meaningful weight reduction.

Psychiatric symptoms were also maintained or improved. Over the 16-week observation period, scores on the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale — a widely used measure of depressive symptoms — fell by 5.36 points from baseline (p<0.0001), with symptom relief confirmed even when the weight-change item was excluded from the analysis. Clinical Global Impression-Severity scores also improved, dropping from 3.83 to 3.03 (p<0.0001). Adverse events were reported in five of the 155 patients (3.2 percent), all mild; no serious adverse events or treatment discontinuations due to side effects occurred.

"This publication acceptance is highly significant in that it represents international recognition of real-world clinical data on lurasidone accumulated in actual clinical settings in South Korea," a Bukwang Pharmaceutical official said. "We will continue to support academic research to provide the best possible evidence-based treatment options for patients suffering from metabolic issues such as weight gain during long-term treatment of bipolar disorder."

The study demonstrated, through real-world clinical data, that Latuda can serve as a practical treatment alternative for bipolar disorder patients whose medication adherence had suffered due to weight gain — a persistent side effect of antipsychotics — by addressing both symptom control and metabolic side effects.


silverpaper@heraldcorp.com