People taking weight loss drugs such as Ozempic and Wegovy are significantly less likely to die or suffer severe symptoms from the coronavirus. the study According to research published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology (JACC).
The subjects, who were already taking 2.4 milligrams (mg) of semaglutide, the active ingredient in the drug that helps the pancreas release the right amount of insulin when blood sugar levels are high and appetite is reduced, Had Consistently low interest rates The researchers found that death from any cause during the study was low.
This study Led It was developed by Brigham and Women's Hospital and is funded by Novo Nordisk, the pharmaceutical company behind Ozempic and Wegovee. Harvard Gazette.
Over an average study period of 3.3 years, researchers observed 17,604 people aged 45 years or older with cardiovascular disease and a body mass index (BMI) of 27kg/m^2 or more (overweight) who were given semaglutide or a placebo.
Although the study began before the coronavirus pandemic, the researchers concluded that “the most severe period [of the outbreak] “It was conducted in parallel with an ongoing trial, providing an opportunity to evaluate the impact of COVID-19 on patients with underlying medical conditions who are at higher risk of COVID-19-related complications and death.”
The results showed that semaglutide did not reduce the risk of viral infection, but fewer participants who took semaglutide suffered coronavirus-related “serious adverse events” or died from the virus, compared with those who only took a placebo.
The researchers found that 232 people who took the weight-loss drugs experienced serious adverse events compared with 277 people who did not, and 65 people who did not take the drugs experienced serious adverse events compared with 43 people who did not.
Overall, patients who took semaglutide were 33 percent less likely to die from the disease.
“This trial was initiated before COVID-19 and did not anticipate a global respiratory pandemic,” said Benjamin M. Sirica, one of the study's co-authors. The Gazette.
Sirica, director of quality initiatives in the cardiovascular division at Brigham and Women's Hospital and professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, specializes in that area of research.
“It is rare for cardiometabolic drugs to improve non-cardiovascular outcomes,” he explained. “The fact that semaglutide reduced non-cardiovascular deaths, particularly COVID-19-related deaths, was surprising and opens new avenues for exploring how this class of drugs can benefit patients.”
In the study, subjects taking the drug “similarly [cardiovascular disease] and non[cardiovascular disease] death.”
The lower non-cardiovascular mortality in patients taking semaglutide was “mainly due to reduced infectious mortality”, the researchers said.
“These study results highlight the impact of semaglutide on mortality in a wide range of patient populations. [cardiovascular] Sickness and obesity.”
In two other studies of semaglutide, The drug improves symptoms in patients with diseases such as heart failure and inflammation, and reduces mortality in patients with chronic kidney disease, according to a paper published Friday by JACC.
