The medicines watchdog has received reports of ten deaths linked to the use of weight loss jabs, it has revealed.
There have also been 7,228 reports of nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea associated with the likes of Wegovy and Ozempic.
Of these, 68 patients were admitted to hospital, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) said.
The numbers are based on users or healthcare workers informing the regulator of adverse reactions to the drugs, known as glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RAs).
A reported death or adverse reaction does not necessarily mean it has been caused by the medicine, only that someone had a suspicion it may have been.
Underlying or concurrent illnesses and other medicines the patients may have been taken at the time of their death may be responsible and such events can also be coincidental, it told trade magazine Chemist and Druggist.
The MHRA last week urged healthcare professionals to ‘report cases of misuse’ and ‘inform patients about the common and serious side effects associated with GLP-1RAs’.
At the time, it said it knew of 46 hospitalisations as of August 16 – suggesting there have been an additional 22 reports in two months, representing a 48 per cent increase.
The medicines watchdog has received reports of ten deaths linked to the use of weight loss jabs, it revealed yesterday
Health secretary Wes Streeting has said the injections are not ‘cosmetic’ treatments and should only be used by obese people who have failed to shift weight through diet
The alert warned healthcare professionals to ‘be aware there have been reports of potential misuse of GLP-1RAs for unauthorised indications such as aesthetic weight loss’.
The regulator said that ‘healthcare professionals should… be alert for signs of misuse of these medicines in their patients, warn these patients that they are at risk of side effects and report any adverse reactions’.
It added that patients should also be warned of the risk of counterfeit GLP-1RA medicines for weight loss if not prescribed by a registered healthcare professional and be aware that some falsified medicines have been found to contain insulin’.
A doctor warned in June that ‘at some point, we’re going to have a death’ after a ‘young girl’ was rushed to A&E for treatment with life-threatening symptoms.
She had obtained Wegovy through Boots Online Doctor.
Wegovy is licensed for use as a weight loss jab and Ozempic, which contains the same drug at a different dose, is used in the treatment of diabetes, although some people have been using it as a fat buster.
Health secretary Wes Streeting has said the injections are not ‘cosmetic’ treatments and should only be used by obese people who have failed to shift weight through diet and exercise.
They also need to be prescribed and used responsibly under medical supervision, he added.
NHS-backed data source OpenPrescribing shows soaring prescriptions for semaglutide, the drug in Ozempic and Wegovy
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Mr Streeting, who has proposed giving the jabs to obese jobless people to get them back to work, said: ‘Weight-loss drugs have enormous potential.
‘When taken alongside healthy diet and exercise, they can be game changers in tackling obesity and getting people back to good health.
‘But these are not cosmetic drugs that should be taken to help get a body beautiful picture for Instagram.
‘These are serious medicines and should only be used responsibly and under medical supervision.
‘They’re not a quick fix to lose a few pounds and buying them online without appropriate assessment can put people’s health at risk.
‘Drugs approved for weight management should only be used by those tackling obesity, where diet and exercise has been tried first, and where patients are eligible.’
The General Pharmaceutical Council last month announced plans to consult on a raft of ‘additional safeguards’ that online pharmacies offering weight loss drugs must provide.
These included properly checking information provided by patients.
The proposals would require pharmacies prescribing or supplying medicines ‘associated with greater risks including those used for weight loss’ to ‘independently verify the person’s weight, height and/or body mass index (BMI)’.
