A Food and Drug Administration advisory panel voted 13-7 to recommend approval for the diet drug Contrave, which is a combination of Wellbutrin (bupropion) and naltrexone according to an article on TheStreet.com. Read the entire article | Email this article

The most common side effects in people given Contrave (bupropion SR (Wellbutrin) plus naltrexone SR) were:

• Nausea reported by 34% of patients vs 11% in the placebo group


• Headache reported by 24% of patients vs 18%


• Constipation reported by 24% of patients vs 5%


• Dizziness reported by 15% of patients vs 5%


• Insomnia reported by 9% of patients vs 6%


• Dry mouth reported by 8% of patients vs 3%


• Anxiety reported by 5% of patients vs 4%


• Tremor reported by 6% of patients vs 1%


• Abdominal pain reported by 6% of patients vs 2%


• Ringing in the ears (tinnitus) reported by 5% of patients vs 1%

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People given Contrave (bupropion SR (Wellbutrin) plus naltrexone SR) combined with an intensive program of diet, exercise, and behavior modification therapy lost an average of 9.3% of body weight compared to 5.1% for those given a placebo according to a new one-year (56-week) study.

The average weight loss in the drug group was 21 lbs, reducing their body weight from 224 lbs to 203 lbs, a 9.3% weight loss, compared to an average weight loss in the placebo group was 11 lbs, reducing their body weight from 220 lbs to 209 lbs, a 5.1% weight loss.

Note: This weight loss is the average for patients who either completed the entire one-year study, and the last weight measured if the patient dropped out later in the study. For example, if a patient had lost 8% after 8 months, and then dropped out of the study, a weight loss of 8% would be recorded as the amount of weight lost even though the patient did not complete the entire study. Read the entire article | Email this article

Among participants who completed the entire one-year (56 week) study, those given Contrave (bupropion SR (Wellbutrin) plus naltrexone SR) combined with an intensive program of diet, exercise, and behavior modification therapy to lost an average of 11.5% of body weight compared to 7.3% for those given a placebo.

The average weight loss in the drug group was 26 lbs, reducing their body weight from 224 lbs to 198 lbs, a 11.5% weight loss, compared an average weight loss in the placebo group was 16 lbs, reducing their body weight from 220 lbs to 204 lbs, a 7.3% weight loss.

Note: In order to calculate weight loss in pounds, I made the assumption that the average body weight of those who completed the study was the same as the entire group. Read the entire article | Email this article

Contrave, a drug combination of Wellbutrin (bupropion) and naltrexone, causes the most weight loss with doses of 400 mg of Wellbutrin (bupropion) plus 32 mg of immediate-release naltrexone according to a press release from Orexigen Therapeutics, the company developing this drug combination. Read the entire article | Email this article

Contrave, a combination of Wellbutrin (bupropion) and naltrexone, at the optimum doses of 400 mg of Wellbutrin (bupropion) plus 32 mg of immediate-release naltrexone, caused an average weight loss of 10.7 percent after eleven months according to a press release from Orexigen Therapeutics, the company developing this drug combination. Read the entire article | Email this article

Drop out rates for the first six months for those given Contrave, with various doses of Wellbutrin (bupropion) and naltrexone, were 7.9 percent for those given 32 mg of naltrexone plus 400 mg of Wellbutrin (bupropion) compared to 18 percent for those given 48 mg of naltrexone plus 400 mg of Wellbutrin (bupropion) according to a press release from Orexigen Therapeutics, the company developing this drug combination. Read the entire article | Email this article

Nausea was the most common adverse effect of Contrave, the drug combination of 32 mg of naltrexone plus 400 mg of Wellbutrin (bupropion) according to a press release from Orexigen Therapeutics, the company developing this drug combination. Other side effects include headache, dizziness and insomnia. "There was no indication of meaningful adverse effects of Contrave therapy on vital signs including blood pressure and pulse, ECG intervals, laboratory evaluations or... depression," the press release noted.

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Among patients who completed the six month study, those given Contrave, a drug combination of Wellbutrin (bupropion) and naltrexone, lost an average of 6.8 percent of their body weight in six months compared to 3.8 percent for those given Wellbutrin (bupropion) alone, 2.2 percent for for those given naltrexone alone, and 1 percent for patients given a placebo according a paper by Frank Greenway and George Bray (2007). (The placebo group was discontinued after four months.) Read the entire article | Email this article

Among patients who finished the study, those given Contrave, with higher than 300 mg doses of Wellbutrin (bupropion) and one of three different doses of naltrexone -- I assume less than 50 mg used in the previous study in order to try and reduce nausea -- lost an average of 7 percent to 7.6 percent after six months compared to 1.1 percent for those given a placebo. After nine months, the average weight loss for those still in the study was 8 percent to 9.3 percent. Read the entire article | Email this article