Health Officials Investigating Possible Link Between Ozempic and Eye-Rotting Condition
Ozempic manufacturer Novo Nordisk said patient safety is a priority and “the benefit-risk profile of semaglutide remains unchanged”
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Health officials in Europe are investigating Ozempic and the trendy drug’s possible link to an eye-rotting condition that causes blindness.
On Dec. 17, the European Medicines Agency announced that it will review two recently published Danish studies that found that Novo Nordisk’s Ozempic — brand name for semaglutide — significantly increases the risk of developing a condition called non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy, or NAION, more than doubling the likelihood.
NAION is a rare condition that causes a lack of blood flow to part of the optic nerve, which connects the eye to the brain. Without blood flow, the affected areas swell up, stop working correctly and start to die, resulting in severe vision loss or blindness, according to the Cleveland Clinic.
Vision loss from NAION is typically sudden and painless, and affects one eye at a time.
The EMA said that previous evidence did not support the connection between the GLP-1 and NAION, but the new research raises concerns about the drug’s safety.
In a statement, Novo Nordisk said that patient safety is a priority while maintaining the Ozempic and Wegovy are secure to use.
"After a thorough evaluation of the studies and Novo Nordisk’s internal safety assessment, Novo Nordisk is of the opinion that the benefit-risk profile of semaglutide remains unchanged,” the company said.
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The EMA’s investigation comes months after similar studies on Ozempic were published in the U.S.
On July 3, a study in JAMA Opthamology, found that patients prescribed semaglutide were more than four times more likely to develop NAION. Researchers analyzed data and medical records from 16,827 patients in the Boston area between 2017 and 2023.
However, the study noted that more research is required.
Dr. Joseph Rizzo, the director of neuro-opthatmology at Mass Eye and Ear, told NBC News that researchers cannot determine for certain whether semaglutide causes NAION because the study's findings were based on a review of existing data. The expert emphasized that a larger, randomized controlled clinical trial would be needed to further prove a link between the ingredient and the disease.
“What it does show is an association between taking semaglutide and developing this condition where you lose vision,” he told the outlet.
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