Rimonabant Information
Rimonabant is the first in a new class of therapeutic agents called Cannabinoid-1 Receptor Blockers (CB1). Rimonabant is used in the treatment of obesity and related conditions.
How does rimonabant work?
Rimonabant acts by selectively blocking CB1 receptors found in the brain and in peripheral organs important in glucose and lipid (or fat) metabolism, including adipose tissue, the liver, gastrointestinal tract and muscle1.
Rimonabant switches off the same brain circuits that make people hungry when they smoke cannabis.
CB1 receptor blockade with Rimonabant acts to decrease the overactivity of the endocannabinoid system (EC system)2,3. The EC system is a recently characterised physiological system that includes receptors such as the CB1 receptor and it has been shown to play an important role in regulating body weight and in controlling energy balance, as well as glucose and lipid (or fat) metabolism.
What is Rimonabant used for?
Rimonabant is used complementary to diet and exercise to treat obese or overweight patients who suffer from Type 2 diabetes and abnormal levels of fat in the blood. Patients with large waist circumference (102 cm in men and 88 cm in women) will mostly benefit from taking the drug.
Does Rimonabant also aid smoking cessation?
FDA issued a non approvable letter for Rimonabant for use in smoking cessation. An approvable letter was however issued for rimonabant for use in weight management.
What were the results of Rimonabant Clinical trial studies?
In clinical studies, Rimonabant has been shown to improve a wide array of cardiometabolic risk factors as well as promoting sustained weight loss.
Approximately half of the observed improvement in HDL-cholesterol, triglycerides and HbA1C (an indicator of blood sugar control) in patients who received generic Rimonabant 20mg was beyond that expected from weight loss alone.
What are the side-effects of Rimonabant?
Side effects in the trial on rimonabant in obesity were vomiting and nausea, forcing about 19 percent of patients to leave the trial versus 13 percent of those who took placebo.
