The European Commission has approved a formulation of Novo Nordisk's diabetes drug, liraglutide, for treating patients of obesity, a disease that affects approximately 10 to 30 percent of adults in the European Union.

The injectable drug, to be marketed as Saxenda, is already approved by health regulators in the United States.

The Danish drug maker expects to launch Saxenda in several European markets starting in 2015, it said in a statement.