The UK government has issued an alert to weight-loss clinics in Britain to stop prescribing Ozempic-type medications to slimmers, in a bid to combat a shortage of the drug, which is widely used to treat diabetics.
The medication, originally developed to treat diabetes, has over the past two years been approved by regulatory bodies in the UK and the US for use as a weight-loss drug in cases where other medical conditions, such as heart disease or diabetes, are present.
Cayman, like other countries around the world, has been seeing a marked uptick in the use of the injectable medication, as it is embraced by people who want to lose weight.
The demand for the drug worldwide has outstripped production by the manufacturers.
This week, the UK’s Department of Health and Social Care sent a national patient safety alert to National Health Service (NHS) and private healthcare providers, calling on them not to offer the medicines, known as glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs), to weight-loss clients. The medications include semaglutide (Ozempic), dulaglutide, liraglutide and exenatide – all used for the treatment of diabetes.
The alert issued in the UK stated that supplies of Saxenda, the brand of liraglutide medication authorised for weight-loss use there, are not expected to stabilise to meet full market demand until at least mid-2024.
Dr. Nick Gent, Cayman’s chief medical officer, in an interview with the Compass Friday, said he was monitoring developments in the UK quite closely, and “working with some colleagues on best practice guidelines”.
“Essentially, what they’re saying in the UK is this is in relatively short supply and there is a group of people who potentially benefit most from it, and we should focus on those people receiving it,” he said.
He also warned about the misuse of the drug, highlighting the “quite unpleasant side effects if it’s not properly monitored”.
He urged it only be prescribed to, and used by, people “with the right clinical indication”, that is, individuals who are significantly overweight and who also have a heart disease condition or diabetes.
The Compass reported last week on the shortage of the drug on island where it is prescribed to many of the islands’ diabetics.
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