Dr Abd Tahrani MD, MMedSci, CCT (Endocrinology and Diabetes), PhD, SCOPE (International Fellow), FRCP (London)

Dr Abd Tahrani

Department of Metabolism and Systems Science
Honorary Professor of Medicine

Contact details

Telephone
+44 (0) 7801549960
Email
a.a.tahrani@bham.ac.uk
Twitter
@Abdtahrani
View my research portal
Address
University of Birmingham
Edgbaston
Birmingham
B15 2TT
UK

Abd Tahrani is an Honorary Professor of Medicine at the University of Birmingham and an Honorary Consultant in Endocrinology, Diabetes and Weight Management at the University Hospitals of Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust. He currently has a substantive role at Novo Nordisk global obesity team. Abd has wide ranging experience in the field of obesity academically and clinically. He worked extensively with patients organisations, policy makers, payers, professional societies, research funders and training bodies to improve obesity management and the care delivered to people living with obesity. His clinical experience covers wide aspects of obesity medicine including the management of obesity and its complications. His research work is focussed on translational research (including clinical trials) and real-world evidence as well as close collaborations with basic and public health scientists to develop our understanding of the pathogenesis of obesity from biological and environmental perspectives.

Obesity stigma: a key problem in tackling obesity

A recent report from the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Obesity showed that 88% of people with obesity have been stigmatised, criticised or abused because of their disease.

Qualifications

  • SCOPE International Fellow in obesity, the World Obesity Federation, 2020
  • FRCP (London), 2017
  • SCOPE National Fellow in obesity, the World Obesity Federation, 2014
  • PhD in sleep, diabetes and microvascular complications, University of Birmingham, 2013
  • CCT in Diabetes and Endocrinology, 2012
  • MMedSci, Master of Medical Sciences, Keele University, 2008
  • MRCP (UK), 2003
  • MD in Medicine, University of Aleppo, Syria 1998

Biography

Abd Tahrani is currently the International Medical Vice President, Obesity & NASH, Clinical Drug Development, Novo Nordisk in Copenhagen. He is an Honorary Professor of Medicine at the University of Birmingham (UoB) and an Honorary Consultant in Endocrinology, Diabetes & Weight Management at the University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust.

Prior to joining Novo Nordisk, he was the lead for translational research in the Centre of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism (CEDAM), Birmingham Health Partners and the chair of the clinical committee of the Association for the Study of Obesity (ASO) UK. Abd also was an associate editor for the European Journal of Endocrinology, a senior editor for BMC Endocrine Disorders, the chair of the Type 2 Diabetes Research Steering Group in Diabetes UK and a member of the nutrition and obesity group of the ESE.

Abd received several awards including NIHR research training fellowship (2008), NIHR Clinician Scientist (2012), the American Academy of Sleep Medicine Young investigator award in OSA research (2013), and SCOPE National & International Fellowships from the World Obesity Federation in (2014 & 2020). Abd’s research themes included: 1) the metabolic consequences of sleep-related disorders, 2) obesity management & health care delivery, 3) diabetes-related neuropathy. 

Abd has published over 190 peer reviewed articles and delivered more than 140 invited talks in the leading conferences globally.  Abd held a number of positions before joining Novo Nordisk including being a trustee of ASO (UK), a panel member of the British Sleep Society Research Committee, an Expert advisor to NICE technology appraisals in obesity and neuropathy, a member of the Obesity Policy Engagement Network (OPEN) UK and a member of the strategic council of the Obesity All Party Parliamentary Group (Obesity APPG). He is a regular peer reviewer to the leading journals and research funding organisations.

What barriers do health professionals face when raising the issue of obesity?

Postgraduate supervision

I currently do not accept new PhD students. I have 4 completed PhD students and 7 completed Master students. I currently have 4 PhD students under my supervision.

Research

Research aims

  1. Examine the impact of sleep-related disorders (including obstructive apnoea) on metabolic health, diabetes and obesity and developing new treatment strategies to reduce the burden of metabolic disorders
  2. Obesity management including: the pharmacological and non-pharmacological, the long-term outcomes of bariatric surgery and other treatment modalities, health service delivery) as well as the management of obesity-related comorbidities such as polycystic ovarian syndrome, idiopathic intracranial hypertension and Type 2 diabetes.
  3. Improve our understanding of the pathogenesis of diabetes-related microvascular complications (peripheral neuropathy, autonomic neuropathy, nephropathy, foot disease) and to identify new treatment targets and effective screening strategies

Research groups and centres

Centre for Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism

Publications

Highlight publications

Singh, P, Adderley, N, Subramanian, A, Gokhale, K, Hazlehurst, J, Singhal, R, Bellary, S, Tahrani, A & Nirantharakumar, K 2022, 'Glycemic outcomes in patients with type 2 diabetes after bariatric surgery compared with routine care: a population-based, real-world cohort study in the United Kingdom', Surgery for obesity and related diseases : official journal of the American Society for Bariatric Surgery. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soard.2022.08.001

Alshehri, Z, Subramanian, A, Adderley, N, Gokhale, K, Karamat, MA, Ray, C, Kumar, P, Nirantharakumar, K & Tahrani, A 2022, 'Risk of incident obstructive sleep apnoea in patients with type 1 diabetes: a population-based retrospective cohort study', Diabetologia, vol. 65, no. 8, pp. 1353-1363. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00125-022-05714-5

Wang, Z, Hazlehurst, J, Subramanian, A, Tahrani, A, Hanif, W, Thomas, GN, Singh, P, Wang, J, Sainsbury, C, Nirantharakumar, K & Crowe, F 2022, 'Diabetic foot risk classification at the time of type 2 diabetes diagnosis and subsequent risk of mortality: a population-based cohort study', Frontiers in Endocrinology, vol. 13, 888924. https://doi.org/10.3389/fendo.2022.888924

Mollan, SP, Mitchell, JL, Yiangou, A, Ottridge, RS, Alimajstorovic, Z, Cartwright, DM, Hickman, SJ, Markey, KA, Singhal, R, Tahrani, AA, Frew, E, Brock, K & Sinclair, AJ 2022, 'Association of amount of weight lost after bariatric surgery with intracranial pressure in women with idiopathic intracranial hypertension', Neurology, vol. 99, no. 11, pp. e1090-e1099. https://doi.org/10.1212/WNL.0000000000200839

Yang, W, Abbott, S, Borg, C-M, Chesworth, P, Graham, Y, Logue, J, Ogden, J, O'Kane, M, Ratcliffe, D, Sherf-Dagan, S, Singhal, R, Snowdon-Carr, V, Tahrani, A & Mahawar, K 2022, 'Global variations in preoperative practices concerning patients seeking primary bariatric and metabolic surgery (PACT Study): a survey of 634 bariatric healthcare professionals', International Journal of Obesity, vol. 46, no. 7, pp. 1341-1350. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41366-022-01119-x

Recent publications

Article

Makhdom, E, Maher, A, Ottridge, R, Nicholls, M, Ali, A, Cooper, BG, Ajjan, RA, Bellary, S, Hanif, W, Hanna, F, Hughes, D, Jayagopal, V, Mahto, R, Patel, M, Young, J, Nayak, AU, Chen, MZ, Kyaw-Tun, J, Gonzalez, S, Gouni, R, Subramanian, A, Adderley, N & Tahrani, A 2025, 'Association Between Sleep Duration and Obesity in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes: A Longitudinal Study', Diabetic Medicine, vol. 42, no. 6, e70051. https://doi.org/10.1111/dme.70051

Busetto, L, Capucci, S, da Rocha Fernandes, JD, Holloway, S, Tahrani, AA, Thompson, A & Pearson-Stuttard, J 2025, 'Body mass index progression, development of complications and healthcare costs over 8 years in UK individuals living with overweight/obesity', Advances in therapy, vol. 42, no. 9, pp. 4626-4640. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12325-025-03285-6

Albon, E, Afentou, N, Dretzke, J, Hall, J, Ogwulu, CO, Price, M, Clare, K, Singhal, R, Tahrani, A, Frew, E & Moore, D 2025, 'Cost-effectiveness of endoscopic treatments for obesity: a clinical evidence map and systematic review to inform a model-based cost-effectiveness analysis', Health Technology Assessment.

Pournaras, DJ, da Rocha Fernandes, JD, Holloway, S, Marsland, A, Tahrani, AA & Capucci, S 2025, 'Modelled Weight Loss in an English Population Eligible for Bariatric Surgery: A Retrospective Open Cohort Study', Advances in therapy, vol. 42, no. 8, pp. 3978-3992. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12325-025-03267-8

Makhdom, EA, Subramanian, A, Nirantharakumar, K, Adderley, NJ & Tahrani, AA 2025, 'Obstructive sleep apnoea and risk of fragility fracture in patients with type 2 diabetes: A population-based retrospective cohort study', Endocrinology, diabetes & metabolism, vol. 8, no. 6, e70100. https://doi.org/10.1002/edm2.70100

Maretty, L, Gill, D, Simonsen, L, Soh, K, Zagkos, L, Galanakis, M, Sibbesen, J, Iglesias, MT, Secher, A, Valkenborg, D, Purnell, JQ, Knudsen, LB, Tahrani, A & Geybels, M 2025, 'Proteomic changes upon treatment with semaglutide in individuals with obesity', Nature Medicine. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-024-03355-2

Busetto, L, Schnecke, V, Overvad, M, Capucci, S, Reynoso, R, Bravo, R, Tahrani, AA & Morgen, CS 2025, 'The identification of potential treatment targets to reduce the risk of obesity‐related complications: a step toward a treat‐to‐target approach in obesity management', Obesity Science & Practice, vol. 11, no. 6, e70094. https://doi.org/10.1002/osp4.70094

Clyde, DR, Adib, R, Baig, S, Bhasker, AG, Byrne, J, Cameron, D, Catalain, C, Clare, K, de Beaux, A, Drummond, G, Fawal, H, Fried, M, Ghanem, O, Graham, Y, Goel, R, Hopkins, G, Husain, F, Joyce, B, Kermansaravi, M, Kothari, S, Kow, L, Leite, S, Madhok, B, Mahon, D, Miller, K, Miras, A, Moussa, O, Neto, MG, Nimeri, A, O'Kane, M, Parmar, C, Peterli, R, Poggi, L, Saliminen, P, Sarkar, R, Shenfine, J, Sogg, S, Stenberg, E, Suter, M, Taha, S, Tahrani, A, Vilallonga, R, Voon, K, Welbourn, R, Zerrweck, C, Lamb, P, Mahawar, KK, Yang, W & Robertson, AGN 2024, 'An international Delphi consensus on patient preparation for metabolic and bariatric surgery', Clinical Obesity. https://doi.org/10.1111/cob.12722

Baker-Knight, J, Pournaras, DJ, Mahawar, K, Welbourn, R, Li, Y, Sharma, Y, Guerra, I & Tahrani, A 2024, 'Assessing economic investment required to scale up bariatric surgery capacity in England: a health economic modelling analysis', BMJ open, vol. 14, no. 7, e084356. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2024-084356

Nielsen, RL, Monfeuga, T, Kitchen, RR, Egerod, L, Leal, LG, Schreyer, ATH, Gade, FS, Sun, C, Helenius, M, Simonsen, L, Willert, M, Tahrani, AA, McVey, Z & Gupta, R 2024, 'Data-driven identification of predictive risk biomarkers for subgroups of osteoarthritis using interpretable machine learning', Nature Communications, vol. 15, no. 1, 2817. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-46663-4

Mantzios, M, Bahia, H, Hussain, M, Keyte, R, Egan, H, Strachan, R & Tahrani, AA 2024, 'Exploring the experiences of people with obesity and post-bariatric surgery patients after three months using the mindful eating reflective practice: An interpretative phenomenological analysis', Nutrition and health. https://doi.org/10.1177/02601060241281779

Keyte, R, Mantzios, M, Hussain, M, Tahrani, AA, Abbott, S, Strachan, R, Singhal, R & Egan, H 2024, '‘Surgery is my only hope’: A qualitative study exploring perceptions of living with obesity and the prospect of having bariatric surgery', Clinical Obesity. https://doi.org/10.1111/cob.12643

Makhdom, E, Maher, A, Ottridge, R, Nicholls, M, Ali, A, Cooper, BG, Ajjan, RA, Bellary, S, Hanif, W, Hanna, F, Hughes, D, Jayagopal, V, Mahto, R, Patel, M, Young, J, Nayak, AU, Chen, MZ, Kyaw-Tun, J, Gonzalez, S, Gouni, R, Subramanian, A, Adderley, N, Patel, S & Tahrani, A 2024, 'The Impact of Obstructive Sleep Apnoea Treatment on Microvascular Complications in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes: A Feasibility Randomised Controlled Trial: CPAP Impact on Microvascular Complications in T2D Patients', The Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine, vol. 20, no. 6, pp. 947–957. https://doi.org/10.5664/jcsm.11020

Review article

Eleftheriadou, A, Spallone, V, Tahrani, AA & Alam, U 2024, 'Cardiovascular autonomic neuropathy in diabetes: an update with a focus on management', Diabetologia, vol. 67, no. 12, pp. 2611-2625. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00125-024-06242-0

Wang, Z, Crowe, FL, Tahrani, AA, Singh, P, Wang, J, Tan, L, Nirantharakumar, K & Hazlehurst, J 2024, 'The effect of bariatric surgery on diabetes related foot complications among patients with type 2 diabetes: A systematic review ', Journal of Diabetes and its Complications, vol. 38, no. 9, 108813. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jdiacomp.2024.108813

View all publications in research portal

Expertise

Obesity, sleep apnoea, diabetes