A new analysis shows that nearly nine in 10 patients who use successful weight-loss drugs quit prematurely.
Researchers analyzed more than 3,000 U.S. pharmacy claims from patients prescribed injections such as Ozempic and Wegovy.
They found that only one in four patients who took the drugs for weight loss and not for diabetes continued taking Ozempic for at least two years.
And only one in fifteen is left with less popular drugs that work in the same way, such as Saxenda and Victoza.
The findings come as weight-loss drug makers face as many as 10,000 lawsuits over serious side effects, including stomach paralysis, tears in patients’ esophagus, blindness and suicidal thoughts.
Only one in four patients taking Ozempic and Wegovy continue taking them after two years, according to a new analysis
It is estimated that 15.5 million Americans have used a weight loss drug at some point
The findings are also important because previous research has shown that as many as 80 percent of patients who stop taking the medication regain the weight.
The researchers caution that it is unclear why patients stopped taking the drugs. They suspect it could be due to side effects such as nausea and stomach paralysis, but also to shortages and the lack of available insurance.
Novo Nordisk, the maker of Ozempic, said it “does not believe these data are sufficient to draw conclusions about overall patient adherence and persistence in using different GLP-1 medications, including our treatments.”
More and more unpleasant side effects are being reported. Patients report having suffered organ failure, suicidal thoughts and that the joy in their lives has disappeared.
The analysis, conducted by pharmacy insurance manager Prime Therapeutics and Magellan Rx Management, looked at pharmacy and medical claims from 3,364 patients with insurance that covers weight-loss drugs.
It is one of the first long-term studies into the use of drugs that have only recently come onto the market as treatments for diabetes and weight loss.
All patients had received new prescriptions between January and December 2021 and were diagnosed with obesity or had a BMI greater than 30.
Participants were prescribed one of the following medications: Ozempic, Wegovy, Trulicity, Rybelsus, Saxenda, or Victoza.
Ozempic, Wegovy and Rybelsus contain the active ingredient semaglutide.
This mimics the hormone GLP-1 (glucagon-like peptide-1), which slows the movement of food through the digestive system, signaling the body that it is full.
Ozempic and Wegovy are available in the form of weekly injections, while Rybelsis is available in tablets.
Liraglutide, which has a similar effect, is the active ingredient in Saxenda and Victoza, while Trulicity uses the GLP-1 agonist dulaglutide.
The average age of participants was 46.5 and 81 percent were women. Patients with type 2 diabetes, for whom the drugs were originally designed, were excluded from the study.
The team found that, of all the medications, only 15 percent of patients were still taking them two years later.
In addition, 24.1 percent of Wegovy patients continued taking the medication, and 22.2 percent of patients taking Ozempic.
For Trulicity, 13.8 percent of participants continued, along with 10.4 percent of those taking Rybelsus. And only seven percent of patients continued on Saxenda and Victoza.
According to a 2024 Pew Research report, 8.2 million prescriptions for semaglutide drugs were written in 2021, four times more than in 2019. It is now estimated that 15.5 million Americans have used a weight-loss drug at some point.
Meredith Hotchkiss (left), 56, told DailyMail.com her life has been ‘ruined’ by alleged side effects of the weight-loss drug Mounjaro. Dina Fioretti (right), 60, from Illinois, said Ozempic made her vomit so much that it tore a hole in her esophagus
The research team noted that one in four patients switched medications at some point during treatment, which they said could be due to shortages or changes in insurance coverage.
They also suggested that patients may have stopped due to side effects, shortages and a lack of ongoing insurance coverage.
These findings come after pharmaceutical companies such as Novo Nordisk of Ozempic and Eli Lilly of Wegovy have faced allegations of several serious side effects.
Meredith Hotchkiss, 56, of Idaho, joined nearly 100 patients in a lawsuit against Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk after she was diagnosed with gastroparesis.
Ms. Hotchkiss was taking Mounjaro and Trulicity, another Eli Lilly injection for type 2 diabetes. Mounjaro was prescribed to her from July 2022 to about June 2023. Trulicity was also briefly prescribed to her from December 2022 to March 2023.
Although she has diabetes, her condition is ‘well controlled’, so she was given the medication off-label for weight loss. ‘I thought if I could lose weight and get Mounjaro, I could give it a go because everyone, you see everyone, is doing it,’ she previously told DailyMail.com.
“The doctor told me I could lose weight and it worked really well. He said I would be very sick for four weeks and after four weeks I would feel a lot better.”
Within a few weeks of starting the medication, her condition worsened and she could not tolerate anything other than cottage cheese, macaroni and cheese, and yogurt.
Doctors have also told her that she is no longer allowed to travel abroad due to her health problems and she fears that she will never be able to eat a solid meal again.
And Dina Fioretti, 60, from Illinois, told DailyMail.com she is suing Novo Norisk after Ozempic allegedly made her vomit so much that it tore a hole in her esophagus.
