Medicines such as Ozepic, Wegovy and Mounjaro (known as Semaglutide and Tirzepatide) have changed the way doctors generate diabetes and obesity; but they are being associated with eye diseases.
Os Medicines that mimic the hormone LPG-1 They limit hunger and interest in food, helping people lose weight and control blood sugar levels.
However, two new published studies show that people who take these medications can have a small increased risk of serious eye diseases and vision loss.
A Non -arteritic anterior ischemic optical neuropathy (naion) It is a rare but devastating eye disease that occurs when blood flow to the optic nerve is suddenly reduced or blocked. It is also designated by “Eye stroke”.
The exact cause of the noian is not yet clear and there are no treatments available today. People with diabetes are at risk of developing Naion.
Unlike other ocular diseases that gradually develop, the Naion causes a Loss of sudden and painless vision. Usually patients realize the disease when they wake up and find that they have lost their sight in one eye.
A Vision tends to get worse for a few weeks and slowly stabilizes. Vision recovery is variable, but about 70% of people do not record improvements in their vision.
One concluded that participants to whom it was prescribed Semaglutide for diabetes were four times more likely to develop Naion. For those who took the medicine for weight loss, the risk was almost eight times higher.
In June, the European Medicines Agency concluded that Naion represented a “Very rare” side effect of medicines with Semaglutide.
For the first time, the drug regulatory agency now requires that product labels include Naion as a documented risk.
In addition to Naion, there is also evidence that suggests that GLP-1 medications can aggravate diabetic eye diseasealso known as diabetic retinopathy. This occurs when high blood sugar levels damage the small blood vessels of the retina, which can lead to vision loss.
What do new studies say?
The two recently published studies investigated, for two years, people with type 2 diabetes who lived in the US. The studies analyzed medical records from 159,000 to 185,000 people.
He concluded that Semaglutide or Tirzepatide was associated with a more modest risk of developing Naion than previously thought. Of 159,000 people with type 2 diabetes who were taking these medicines, 35 people (0.04%) developed Naion compared to 19 patients (0.02%) in the comparison group.
However, the researchers found an increased risk of developing “other optic nerve disturbances”.
It did not find an added risk of Naion among people who take GLP-1 medications. However, the researchers discovered a small Increased number of people who develop diabetic retinopathy in people who were prescribed GLP-1.
Generally speaking, participants who took GLP-1 drugs had fewer complications related to diabetic retinopathy and needed less invasive eye treatments compared to the group that took other diabetes drugs.
More studies are still needed to understand how GLP-1 medications can lead to eye complications.
