Effect of tirzepatide versus insulin degludec on liver fat content and abdominal adipose tissue in people with type 2 diabetes (SURPASS-3 MRI): a substudy of the randomised, open-label, parallel-group, phase 3 SURPASS-3 trial.

Studied

Randomized, open-label phase 3 substudy comparing weekly tirzepatide with daily titrated insulin degludec for liver fat and abdominal adipose tissue.

Who / model

The MRI population included 296 insulin-naive adults with type 2 diabetes, BMI at least 25, and fatty liver index at least 60; outcomes were assessed at 52 weeks.

Studied dose & schedule

Dose and schedule have not yet been extracted for this summary.

Found

Mean liver fat began at 15·71%. At week 52, pooled tirzepatide 10 mg and 15 mg reduced it by -8·09% versus -3·38% with degludec; the estimated between-group difference was -4·71%. Visceral and subcutaneous abdominal fat volumes also fell more with tirzepatide.

Limits

Open-label MRI substudy rather than the full trial population; 296 of 502 assessed people entered the MRI analysis. Eli Lilly funded the study. The abstract states no author-framed limitation.

Read summary source ↗ · Prepared 9/22/2026 · AI-assisted, source-based summary