On Friday, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) warned patients using weight-loss drugs, such as Novo Nordisk A/S’s NVO Wegovy, to inform their doctors before general anesthesia or deep sedation surgery.
This recommendation stems from potential respiratory complications linked to these medications.
Weight-loss drugs like Wegovy and Eli Lilly And Co’s LLY Zepbound and Mounjaro belong to a class known as GLP-1 receptor agonists, which slow the emptying of food from the stomach, making users feel full for longer periods.
Their action of slowing gastric emptying is already noted in the product information for various drugs in this class, such as dulaglutide, exenatide, liraglutide, lixisenatide, semaglutide, and tirzepatide.
The EMA’s drug safety committee, PRAC, highlighted the risk of aspiration, a condition where stomach contents might move into the respiratory tract, potentially causing pneumonia.
This risk is particularly concerning for patients undergoing anesthesia or deep sedation during surgery. Although the regulator has not established a definitive causal link between GLP-1 drugs and aspiration, the nature of these medications’ action on delaying gastric emptying presents a plausible risk.
The PRAC reviewed data from various sources, including case reports from EudraVigilance, scientific literature, and clinical trials. Despite the inability to confirm a direct association between GLP-1 analogs and aspiration, the committee emphasized the importance of awareness among healthcare professionals and patients regarding the potential risks.
Aspiration and pneumonia aspiration complicate between one in 900 to one in 10,000 general anesthesia procedures, depending on risk factors.
Price Action: NVO shares are up 2.02% at $142.62, and LLY shares are up 0.97% at $943.24 at the last check on Friday.
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