Is non-response real? True between-patient heterogeneity in weight-loss response to incretin-based anti-obesity medications: a systematic review and dose-response network meta-analysis of variability, with an evaluation of early stopping rules

Systematic review and Bayesian dose-response network meta-analysis estimating the true between-patient heterogeneity of weight-loss response to incretin-based anti-obesity medications (GLP-1 receptor agonists and GLP-1-based multi-receptor agonists), by comparing outcome variance between drug and placebo arms across agents and doses. Primary outcome: the SD of individual treatment effects (SD-IR) on percentage body weight change. Assumption-free Frechet-Hoeffding bounds, the proportion of true non-response, and the operating characteristics of early stopping rules at 12-16 and 24-28 weeks are also estimated. Status at registration: protocol only. No searching, screening, data extraction or analysis had been carried out. A PROSPERO registration will be submitted before formal screening begins; if it is issued, its ID will be added here. No external funding.