Novo Nordisk's Saxenda (ingredient: liraglutide), the world's first and only drug for treating obesity with glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1), has maintained the top spot in Korea's obesity market for 13 consecutive quarters.
According to IQVIA, a global health research firm, Saxenda claimed a 27.6 percent share in Korea's obesity drug market in the fourth quarter of 2021 by raking in about 9.6 billion won ($7.9 million) out of the total 35.6 billion won.
Saxenda maintained a market share of more than 20 percent throughout 2021 and its leading position in the obesity treatment market in sales.
Also, Saxenda recorded about 36.2 billion won in sales based on moving annual total (MAT) for the past year in Korea, about 25 percent of the total obesity treatment market.
The company has been recording a share of more than 25 percent for three years and three months since its launch.
"Saxenda has maintained its lead in the Korean obesity treatment market for the past three years since its launch, indicating its weight loss effect and safety profile received recognition by Korean medical professionals and patients," Novo Nordisk Korea General Manager Rana Azfar Zafar said. "Saxenda’s market dominance is very meaningful even amid the Covid-19 pandemic."
Noting that obesity is not an individual's responsibility but a chronic disease that requires continuous treatment and management, Zafar stressed that the company would continue to create an environment where obese patients can overcome obesity and improve their quality of life through professional and systematic treatment.
Saxenda is the world's first glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) analog obesity treatment that increases the feeling of fullness to help control appetite and reduce hunger and food intake, leading to weight loss. The drug has gotten immensely popular in Korea since its launch in March 2018.
The company recently received additional approval from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety as a dietary and exercise supplement for obese children and adolescents (ages 12-17), allowing hospitals to use the treatment to obese children and adolescents patient with a BMI of 30 kg/m2 or more of an adult or weighs more than 60 kg, according to Novo Nordisk Korea.