New Delhi: Popular diabetes and weight loss drugs like Ozempic and Vegov are linked to an increased risk of developing stomach paralysis, a study has found.
Stomach paralysis, also known as gastroparesis, weakens the stomach muscles, causing food to linger in the main digestive organ for long periods of time.
Vegovy is approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for weight management, while Ozempic is an approved drug that helps diabetic patients manage blood sugar levels.
However, Ozempic is sometimes prescribed for weight loss, even though it is not FDA-approved for this purpose. Wegovi and Ozempic are both injections that contain the protein semaglutide, which is similar to the hormone glucagon-like peptide-(GLP-1).Released into the body in response to food intake, GLP-1's main actions include promoting the production of insulin.
While these anti-diabetes and weight-loss drugs, known as GLP-1 receptor agonists or GLP-1 analogs, are known to cause gastrointestinal (GI) side effects such as nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea, new studies Shows less common symptoms like stomach. Gastroparesis, ileus, and acute pancreatitis are also occurring.
The studies were presented at Digestive Disease Week 2024, a conference held May 18-21 in Washington DC, US.
One of these studies, conducted by researchers including those at the University of Kansas, identified 1.85 lakh patients with diabetes or obesity who were prescribed GLP-1 analogs between December 1, 2021, and November 30, 2022.About 0.53 percent of patients were found to develop gastroparesis, with the research team estimating that the risk of this condition increased by 66 percent.
Cholecystitis (inflammation of the gall bladder) was seen in 0.55 percent of patients, which is estimated to increase the risk of developing this condition to 28 percent.
The study authors also found that 0.04 percent of GLP-1 analog-prescription patients developed drug-induced pancreatitis, and estimated that the risk of experiencing this condition increased by more than 350 percent.
They also found that 9 percent of patients showed a significantly higher incidence of nausea and vomiting, while 7.5 percent of them had a higher incidence of gastro-esophageal reflux disease (GERD), a condition in which stomach contents move upward. She goes. The food pipe, or esophagus.The results showed that "the use of GLP-1 agonists in patients with diabetes mellitus and obesity is associated with GI side effects, including nausea vomiting, gastroparesis, GERD, esophagitis, drug-induced pancreatitis cholecystitis and the need for upper-endoscopy, " the authors wrote in the study, currently available as an abstract.
The second study assessed the risk of gastroparesis in patients with type 1 diabetes treated with GLP-1 receptor agonists (RA). Each of the two groups included over 3.36 lakh patients – one receiving the drug and the other not.
"Patients with T2D determined GLP-1 RA had an increased risk of GP at 6, 9, 12, 18, and 24 months. The odds ratio for gastroparesis increased significantly from 6 months to 24 months after controlling for various risk factors. The authors, including those from the Cleveland Clinic, Ohio, write in the study abstract that both studies used data from the multi-institutional database TriNetX.A third study conducted by researchers at Mayo Clinic Minnesota assessed the effects of GLP-1 RA on GI symptoms. Data from approximately 80,000 patients on the May Clinic platform who were prescribed the drug were included for this analysis.
The researchers found that about 14,660 of these patients, or 18 percent, developed at least one new GI symptom suggestive of gastroparesis. About 700 of the 14,660 patients underwent gastric emptying scintigraphy (GES), which helps assess the emptying capacity of the stomach.
The team found that about a third of this group experienced gastroparesis."These real-world data suggest that GLP-1 GI symptoms are prevalent in people with RA," the authors write in the study abstract.
Stomach paralysis, also known as gastroparesis, weakens the stomach muscles, causing food to linger in the main digestive organ for long periods of time.
Vegovy is approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for weight management, while Ozempic is an approved drug that helps diabetic patients manage blood sugar levels.
However, Ozempic is sometimes prescribed for weight loss, even though it is not FDA-approved for this purpose. Wegovi and Ozempic are both injections that contain the protein semaglutide, which is similar to the hormone glucagon-like peptide-(GLP-1).Released into the body in response to food intake, GLP-1's main actions include promoting the production of insulin.
While these anti-diabetes and weight-loss drugs, known as GLP-1 receptor agonists or GLP-1 analogs, are known to cause gastrointestinal (GI) side effects such as nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea, new studies Shows less common symptoms like stomach. Gastroparesis, ileus, and acute pancreatitis are also occurring.
The studies were presented at Digestive Disease Week 2024, a conference held May 18-21 in Washington DC, US.
One of these studies, conducted by researchers including those at the University of Kansas, identified 1.85 lakh patients with diabetes or obesity who were prescribed GLP-1 analogs between December 1, 2021, and November 30, 2022.About 0.53 percent of patients were found to develop gastroparesis, with the research team estimating that the risk of this condition increased by 66 percent.
Cholecystitis (inflammation of the gall bladder) was seen in 0.55 percent of patients, which is estimated to increase the risk of developing this condition to 28 percent.
The study authors also found that 0.04 percent of GLP-1 analog-prescription patients developed drug-induced pancreatitis, and estimated that the risk of experiencing this condition increased by more than 350 percent.
They also found that 9 percent of patients showed a significantly higher incidence of nausea and vomiting, while 7.5 percent of them had a higher incidence of gastro-esophageal reflux disease (GERD), a condition in which stomach contents move upward. She goes. The food pipe, or esophagus.The results showed that "the use of GLP-1 agonists in patients with diabetes mellitus and obesity is associated with GI side effects, including nausea vomiting, gastroparesis, GERD, esophagitis, drug-induced pancreatitis cholecystitis and the need for upper-endoscopy, " the authors wrote in the study, currently available as an abstract.
The second study assessed the risk of gastroparesis in patients with type 1 diabetes treated with GLP-1 receptor agonists (RA). Each of the two groups included over 3.36 lakh patients – one receiving the drug and the other not.
"Patients with T2D determined GLP-1 RA had an increased risk of GP at 6, 9, 12, 18, and 24 months. The odds ratio for gastroparesis increased significantly from 6 months to 24 months after controlling for various risk factors. The authors, including those from the Cleveland Clinic, Ohio, write in the study abstract that both studies used data from the multi-institutional database TriNetX.A third study conducted by researchers at Mayo Clinic Minnesota assessed the effects of GLP-1 RA on GI symptoms. Data from approximately 80,000 patients on the May Clinic platform who were prescribed the drug were included for this analysis.
The researchers found that about 14,660 of these patients, or 18 percent, developed at least one new GI symptom suggestive of gastroparesis. About 700 of the 14,660 patients underwent gastric emptying scintigraphy (GES), which helps assess the emptying capacity of the stomach.
The team found that about a third of this group experienced gastroparesis."These real-world data suggest that GLP-1 GI symptoms are prevalent in people with RA," the authors write in the study abstract.
