Tesamorelin as an Adjunct to Exercise for Improving Physical Function in HIV

Recruiting now · Phase 2 · Has a placebo group

Conditions studied: HIV-1-infection, Frailty, Impaired Physical Function, Abdominal Obesity, Aging

In brief

People with HIV experience earlier impairments in physical function compared to people in the general population. They also exhibit an earlier presentation and more rapid development of frailty, a multisystemic syndrome of aging characterized by reduced activity, fatigue, slowness, weakness, and weight loss. While exercise can improve physical function in people with HIV, it is less effective in doing so than in the general population and is difficult to sustain in the long-term. The goal of this clinical trial is to learn whether the medication tesamorelin will improve physical function and muscle health in adults with HIV when combined with exercise. Tesamorelin is a growth hormone-releasing hormone analogue that is FDA-approved to treat abdominal fat accumulation in people with HIV. While tesamorelin has also been shown to increase muscle mass and improve measures of muscle health, its effects on physical performance and muscle strength have not yet been evaluated. During a 24-week intervention phase, half of participants will be randomly assigned to receive tesamorelin and half of participants will be randomly assigned to receive placebo (a look-alike substance that contains no drug). All participants also will engage in a home-based exercise intervention supervised by an exercise coach. During a subsequent 24-week extension phase, individuals will be monitored off study drug and supervised exercise, and be encouraged to continue to exercise independently. The investigators will investigate effects of tesamorelin on physical function, muscle mass and quality, quality of life, and exercise adherence and self-efficacy. They also will evaluate whether effects of tesamorelin are maintained following treatment cessation. This study may identify an important strategy to improve how individuals aging with HIV function and feel with potential applications to other patient populations.

Key facts

Study ID: NCT06554717
Run by: Massachusetts General Hospital
People needed: 100
Starts: 2025-07-10
Expected to finish: 2028-12-01
Last updated by the study team: 2026-05-19

Who can join

Age: 50 and older, up to 80. Sex: any. Healthy volunteers: not accepted.

You may qualify if…

Men and women, 50-80 years old
Documented HIV infection on suppressive antiretroviral therapy for at least 1 year with HIV-1 RNA <200 copies/mL and CD4+ T cell count >200/µL 3
Sedentary lifestyle, defined as self-reported physical activity that breaks a sweat <3 days/week with no regular resistance exercise in the past 3 months
≥1 Fried frailty criterion (weakness, slow gait speed, exhaustion, decreased physical activity, or unintentional weight loss as defined by specific thresholds)
Excess abdominal adiposity as indicated by at least one of the following elevated anthropometric measures assessed at Screen: (1) waist circumference ≥102 cm in non-Asian males (≥90 cm in Asian males) or ≥88 cm in non-Asian females (≥80 cm in Asian females); (2) waist-to-hip ratio ≥0.9 in males or ≥0.85 in females; (3) waist-to-height ratio ≥0.5 in males and females
Normal mammogram within 2 years (females ≤74 years old) or prostate specific antigen <4 ng/mL (males ≤70 years old) per U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) age-appropriate cancer screening guidelines
For females, postmenopausal defined as no menses for ≥12 months and anti-müllerian hormone (AMH) <20 pg/mL or history of bilateral oophorectomy at least 3 months ago
Provider approval to participate

You may not qualify if…

Use of tesamorelin or other growth hormone (GH)-based therapy within 6 months
Insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) z-score >2.0
HbA1c >8%
Active or suspected malignancy (with the exception of non-melanoma skin cancer) within 24 months
Supraphysiologic testosterone or corticosteroid exposure, or change in exogenous testosterone or corticosteroid dose within 3 months
Change in glucose-lowering medication (e.g., glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists) within 3 months
Active or unstable coronary artery disease, chest pain suspicious for angina, or serious arrythmia
History of hypopituitarism, head irradiation, or other conditions known to affect the GH/IGF-1 axis
Known hypersensitivity to tesamorelin or mannitol
Acute or chronic illness judged by the investigator to represent a contraindication to study participation

Where it is running

University of Colorado - Anschutz Medical Campus — Aurora, Colorado, United States (enrolling)
Massachusetts General Hospital — Boston, Massachusetts, United States (enrolling)

Full record on ClinicalTrials.gov

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