Ozempic and Wegovy Linked to Vision Loss
Semaglutide in the form of drugs like Ozempic, Mounjaro, Wegovy, Rybelsus and Zepbound may increase the risks of vision loss. These drugs are taken to manage type 2 diabetes and obesity and have the potential to help other medical problems like depression, addiction, and Alzheimer’s. Unfortunately, it also appears that one of the drugs’ potential side effects is a rare kind of vision loss, non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION). Around 12% of people around the country has taken semaglutide drugs and around 6% of Americans are currently taking them. No direct causal link has been established, but as popularity of these drugs grow, it’s important to be aware of this possible risk. If you suffered NAION while on Ozempic, Wegovy or another GLP-1 drug, you should call the seasoned Chicago-based dangerous pharmaceuticals lawyers of Moll Law Group.
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Only a small group of patients taking semaglutide have experienced vision issues. A JAMA study, one of several studies, looked at 9 patients that had vision trouble while taking semaglutide.
NAION is a non-inflammatory disease in which the blood supply to the optic nerve is harmed and the patient suffers a sudden partial vision loss that’s permanent. The study was initiated because a patient experienced a painless vision loss while on the drug but had the issue resolve favorably when semaglutide was stopped; when he went back on, he had the same problem with the other eye. The researcher looked into whether other neuro-ophthalmologists had seen this in their patients and found nine cases that are featured in his study. Seven out of nine of the patients, all of them in their 50s and 60s, had typical presentations of NAION, which usually affects only one eye at once, but some had unusual symptoms. Researchers are trying to figure out whether being on semaglutide actually causes NAION and other vision loss.