Tirzepatide has demonstrated greater efficacy than semaglutide in improving glycemic control and reducing body weight in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). However, the optimal tirzepatide dose following a switch from 1.0 mg of semaglutide remains unclear. This retrospective study included 15 T2DM patients who switched to tirzepatide due to inadequate weight loss. All patients started tirzepatide at 2.5 mg, with escalation to either 7.5 mg (n=10) or 10 mg (n=5). Changes in glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) and body weight were assessed over a 3-month period. The 10 mg group experienced a significant reduction in HbA1c (−0.7%±0.3%, P<0.01) and a non-significant trend toward weight loss (−6.6±5.4 kg, P=0.07). In contrast, no significant changes were observed in the 7.5 mg group. There were no statistically significant differences between groups. Since 10 mg of tirzepatide significantly improved glycemic control after switching from 1.0 mg of semaglutide, early escalation to 10 mg may be beneficial for patients who respond inadequately to semaglutide.

Advances in information and communication technology (ICT)-especially, the spread of social networking services (SNSs)-have facilitated the dissemination of information and an explosion of health information lacking scientific evidence. Therefore, we believe that community pharmacies are the most suitable bases for distributing health information. In 2019, we launched the health support pharmacy “Toyonaka Model” in collaboration with the pharmaceutical association, municipal government, and university. Touch-panel digital signage (DS) was used for real-time distribution of ever-changing information and a rapid grasp of pharmacy users’ responses to various types of information. Between September 2019 and August 2021, one DS was installed in a pharmacy in each of Toyonaka City’s seven areas along with 14 questions on the usefulness of the delivered information. Respondents answered the 14 questions by a tablet or questionnaire; touch logs for DS were collected. When a pharmacy user consulted with a pharmacist about information delivered via DS, the contents were recorded and described by the pharmacist on a 4-point scale (e.g., “inquiry only,” “went through to execution”). From the 850 completed questionnaires and 61,565 touches, 88.7% of the respondents indicated that the information was useful, and 90.0% expressed interest in receiving more health information in the future. Thus, health information provided by DS may be useful to pharmacy users, as demonstrated by 113 cases in which the pharmacist was consulted regarding such information. In 62 of these cases, there were indications that the DS information might have influenced users’ behavior and intended actions.