Fears new ‘miracle’ weight-loss jabs could raise risk of going blind

Weight loss jabs Ozempic and Wegovy could raise the risk of going blind, research suggests.

Their key ingredient, semaglutide, may increase the chances of a serious eye condition up to seven-fold, scientists revealed.

They urged doctors to warn patients of the rare potential side effect before prescribing the popular drugs.

Non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION) is caused by a lack of sufficient blood flow to the optic nerve.

Typically painless, it is second only to glaucoma for optic nerve blindness, with sufferers experiencing sudden and incurable vision loss in one eye.

Harvard University researchers started investigating a potential link last summer after three patients taking semaglutide were diagnosed with it in a week.

They examined data from patients treated at the Harvard teaching hospital, Massachusettes Eye and Ear, over a six-year period.

Notes were compared on patients who had received prescriptions for semaglutide to those taking other diabetes or weight-loss drugs.

They found those on the jabs as a diabetes drug were four times more likely to develop the condition, which affects around one in 10,000 people.

This increased to seven-fold in those on it for obesity, which carries a higher dose of the ingredients.

Lead author Joseph Rizzo, a professor of ophthalmology, said: “The use of these drugs has exploded throughout industrialised countries and they have provided very significant benefits in many ways, but future discussions between a patient and their physician should include NAION as a potential risk.

“It is important to appreciate, however, that the increased risk relates to a disorder that is relatively uncommon.”

Among 16,827 patients, 710 had type 2 diabetes, with 194 prescribed semaglutide, and 979 were overweight or obese, with 361 prescribed semaglutide.

In those with type 2 diabetes, there were 17 instances of NAION in patients prescribed semaglutide, compared to six on other diabetes drugs.

Over a three-year follow-up, 8.9 per cent of those on semaglutide were diagnosed with the condition compared to 1.8 per cent on the other drugs, the researchers found.

Meanwhile, in patients who were overweight or obese, 20 NAION events occurred in people prescribed semaglutide, compared to three on other drugs.

Some 6.7 per cent of people on semaglutide had NAION compared to 0.8 per cent on other drugs, according to the findings published in JAMA Ophthalmology.

It comes weeks after the medical director at NHS England warned the drugs can be dangerous and should not be seen as a ‘quick fix’ for people who “just want to lose a few pounds’.

Professor Sir Stephen Powis said the drugs should be used only to treat obesity or diabetes and not abused by holidaymakers trying to get “beach body ready”, following growing concerns over people being treated at A&E after taking the medication.

The Harvard researchers said further studies are needed to fully assess the risks.

Graham McGeown, honorary professor of physiology at Queen’s University Belfast, who was not involved in the research, said: ‘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.”