Evidence mapPaperPMID 40731921Full record

ReviewMedicina (Kaunas, Lithuania)2025

Pharmacologic Disruption: How Emerging Weight Loss Therapies Are Challenging Bariatric Surgery Guidelines.

Safi G Alqatari, Abrar J Alwaheed, Manal A Hasan, Reem J Al Argan, Marj M Alabdullah, Mohammed D Al Shubbar

Abstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania), 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Review
  2. Observational
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Safi G AlqatariDepartment of Internal Medicine, College of Medicine, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, King Fahd University Hospital, Dammam 31441, Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia.ORCID 0000-0002-3994-8216
Abrar J AlwaheedDepartment of Internal Medicine, College of Medicine, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, King Fahd University Hospital, Dammam 31441, Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia.ORCID 0000-0001-7740-4730
Manal A HasanDepartment of Internal Medicine, College of Medicine, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, King Fahd University Hospital, Dammam 31441, Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia.ORCID 0000-0001-9342-7887
Reem J Al ArganDepartment of Internal Medicine, College of Medicine, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, King Fahd University Hospital, Dammam 31441, Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia.ORCID 0000-0001-6056-8616
Marj M AlabdullahDepartment of Internal Medicine, College of Medicine, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, King Fahd University Hospital, Dammam 31441, Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia.ORCID 0009-0000-4022-5181
Mohammed D Al ShubbarDepartment of Internal Medicine, College of Medicine, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, King Fahd University Hospital, Dammam 31441, Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia.ORCID 0009-0000-8483-6080

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Obesity is a chronic, relapsing disease with multifactorial origins and significant global health implications. Historically, bariatric surgery has been the most effective intervention for achieving sustained weight loss and metabolic improvement, especially in individuals with moderate to severe obesity. However, the therapeutic landscape is rapidly evolving. Recent advances in pharmacotherapy-including GLP-1 receptor agonists, dual and triple incretin agonists, and amylin-based combination therapies-have demonstrated unprecedented efficacy, with some agents inducing 15-25% weight loss, approaching outcomes once exclusive to surgical intervention. These developments challenge the continued applicability of existing bariatric surgery criteria, which were established in an era of limited medical alternatives. In this narrative review, we examine the evolution of surgical eligibility thresholds and critically assess the potential role of novel pharmacotherapies in redefining treatment algorithms. By comparing the efficacy, safety, metabolic benefits, and cost-effectiveness of surgery versus next-generation drugs, we explore whether a more stepwise, pharmacotherapy-first approach may now be justified, particularly in patients with BMI 30-40 kg/m

Indexed as

Bariatric SurgeryObesityWeight LossAnti-Obesity AgentsHumansAnti-Obesity Agentsanti-obesity agentsbariatric surgeryglucagon-like peptide 1obesityweight loss medications

Identifiers

PMID40731921
PMCPMC12299311

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.