Recent research has raised concerns about weight loss injections like semaglutide (sold as Ozempic and Wegovy), revealing a potential link to a serious eye condition called non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION). People with diabetes on semaglutide were four times more likely to develop NAION, and those who were overweight or obese faced a sevenfold higher risk compared to other weight loss medications. The condition, often termed an ‘eye stroke’, can cause sudden vision loss in one eye without pain, and there’s currently no effective treatment. Despite its benefits for weight management and diabetes, the safety of these injections is now under scrutiny, urging caution among users and medical professionals alike.
As reported by Dailymail, slimmers were cautioned today that weight loss needles could cause a serious eye problem that could lead to blindness.
Semaglutide, marketed as Ozempic and Wegovy, has been heralded as a game changer in the fight against obesity.
However, according to US doctors, persons with diabetes who were taken semaglutide were four times more likely to be diagnosed with non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION).
Overweight or obese patients taking the pills were seven times more likely to have the disease, known as an ‘eye stroke’, than those taking other weight-loss meds.
Researchers branded the findings significant but uncertain’ and recommended doctors to warn patients about the danger, particularly if they have ‘other known optic nerve issues like glaucoma’.
Professor Joseph Rizzo, an ophthalmology expert at Harvard Medical School, stated: “The use of these drugs has exploded throughout industrialized countries, and they have provided very significant benefits in many ways.”
‘However, future discussions between a patient and their physician should mention NAION as a possible concern.
‘It is crucial to note, however, that the higher risk is due to a rather uncommon disorder.’
NAION, which affects around one in every 10,000 people, arises when the veins that feed blood to the optic nerves get clogged.
The loss of blood supply deprives the visual nerve of oxygen, causing damage to all or part of it.
However, unlike other strokes caused by a lack of blood supply, there is no paralysis, numbness, or loss of speech.
People often have sudden vision loss in one eye, with little pain, and patients often detect the problem when they wake up.
There are no effective treatments for NAION, and eyesight frequently does not improve.
Last summer, Harvard University researchers began looking into a possible relationship after three patients receiving semaglutide were diagnosed with the disease in the same week.
They looked at data from more than 16,000 patients treated at Harvard’s teaching hospital, Massachusetts Eye and Ear, spanning a six-year time frame.
Of these, 710 had type 2 diabetes, and 194 were administered semaglutide, while 979 were overweight or obese, with 361 prescribed semaglutide.
Researchers found 17 cases of NAION in type 2 diabetes patients taking semaglutide, compared to six on other diabetic medications.
Over three years, 8.9% of people taking semaglutide were diagnosed with the disease, compared to 1.8% on the other treatments, the researchers discovered.
Meanwhile, in individuals who were overweight or obese, 20 NAION incidents occurred in those prescribed semaglutide, compared to three on other medicines.
Some 6.7% of persons on semaglutide had NAION, compared to 0.8% on other medications.
Researchers, writing in the journal JAMA Ophthalmology, noted that the number of NAION cases seen was minimal.
Professor Rizzo added: ‘Our findings should be viewed as being significant but tentative, as future studies are needed to examine these questions in a much larger and more diverse population.
‘This is information we did not have before and it should be included in discussions between patients and their doctors, especially if patients have other known optic nerve problems like glaucoma or if there is pre-existing significant visual loss from other causes.’
Meanwhile, Graham McGeown, honorary professor of physiology at Queen’s University Belfast, added: ‘This research does suggest an association between semaglutide treatment and one form of sight-threatening optic neuropathy, but this would ideally be tested in larger studies.
‘Given the rapid increase in semaglutide use and its possible licensing for a range of problems other than obesity and type 2 diabetes, this issue deserves further study, but possible drug side-effects always need to be balanced against likely benefits.’
Novo Nordisk, the manufacturer of Wegovy and Ozempic, has been contacted for comment.
It comes weeks after NHS England’s medical director warned that the medications are harmful and should not be viewed as a ‘quick fix’ for people who ‘simply want to drop a few pounds’.
Following mounting worries about patients being treated at A&E after taking the prescription, Professor Sir Stephen Powis stated that the pills should only be used to treat obesity or diabetes, and not abused by holidaymakers wanting to get ‘beach body ready’.
Elon Musk and Jeremy Clarkson have welcomed the game-changing injections.
Ministers intend to distribute the medicine to millions of overweight British citizens to reduce the country’s massive welfare expense. Children may eventually receive the jabs as well.
Like any medicine, semaglutide can cause side effects that vary in frequency and severity, such as nausea, constipation, diarrhea, exhaustion, stomach discomfort, headaches, and dizziness.
Some people have also reported hair loss while using them.
According to the latest NHS data, 26% of adults in England are obese, with an additional 38% being overweight but not obese.
Experts have identified a lack of exercise and poor diets high in ultra-processed foods as the main contributors to the UK’s obesity pandemic.
Recently, GreatGameIndia reported how Jennifer Hyman of Rent the Runway and Deirdre Quinn of Lafayette 148 discussed with the Wall Street Journal how Ozempic users are reshaping fashion trends and boosting apparel sales.
