Wegovy, a new medication used to treat obesity, may offer an additional unexpected benefit. According to a large clinical trial, people taking Wegovy during the COVID-19 pandemic were less likely to die from the virus, researchers revealed in a study published in The Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
While people using Wegovy contracted COVID-19 at similar rates to those given a placebo, their chances of dying from the infection decreased by 33%, according to the study. Moreover, the overall death rate from all causes was lower among those taking Wegovy, a rare finding in clinical trials for new treatments. These results indicate that obesity itself may significantly contribute to lower life expectancy, and addressing obesity could extend life.
Dr. Jeremy Faust, an emergency physician at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, described the findings as intriguing. He further explained that although the study was not originally designed to assess Wegovy’s effects on COVID-19, the results provided strong evidence due to the randomized nature of the trial. This helped confirm that participants on Wegovy were not inherently healthier than those on the placebo.
More about the study
The unexpected discovery arose during a large clinical trial sponsored by Novo Nordisk, Wegovy’s manufacturer. The trial initially aimed to determine whether the drug could reduce deaths from cardiovascular events such as heart attacks. The study involved 17,604 participants, all of whom had heart disease and a body mass index (BMI) of 27 or higher. None of the participants had diabetes, and they were followed for over three years.
As the COVID-19 pandemic emerged, the study faced challenges. Participants, already at higher risk due to obesity and heart disease, became increasingly vulnerable to severe outcomes from the virus. Keeping the study running during lockdowns and social distancing was difficult, with researchers taking extra precautions to ensure participants received their medications.
Despite the complications, researchers adjusted the trial to collect data on COVID-19 infections and vaccinations. Out of the 17,604 participants, 4,258 contracted COVID-19, with similar numbers between those on Wegovy and those on the placebo. However, a significant difference was observed in deaths: 78 people on Wegovy died, compared to 106 in the placebo group.
Wegovy appeared to not only reduce COVID-19 mortality but also lowered the overall death rate amongst participants by 19%. This finding highlights the potential of treating obesity to improve life expectancy. Dr. Benjamin Scirica, one of the trial investigators, noted that most cardiovascular drugs, such as statins, focus on reducing cardiovascular-related deaths, but they do not usually impact non-cardiovascular deaths. Wegovy appears to be unique in this regard.
What future studies may investigate
The exact reason for Wegovy’s apparent protective effects against COVID-19 is not entirely clear. Dr. David Maron, a cardiologist at Stanford, speculated that the drug’s benefits go beyond simple weight loss, possibly by improving overall health and reducing chronic inflammation. He compared the situation to a healthy individual contracting the flu, which typically causes temporary discomfort but can be fatal for someone with weakened health, such as an elderly person in a nursing home.
Researchers are now considering whether Wegovy and similar drugs could also protect against other infectious diseases, such as the flu or respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). Dr. Scirica plans to examine past studies of GLP-1 drugs to determine if they had an impact on infectious disease outcomes. New studies may also intentionally collect this type of data, given the promising findings so far.
Watch this space. There is a lot to come.
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