Side Effects of Ozempic, Other GLP-1 Drugs Are Mixed, With Net Benefits Overall: Study

Researchers found that GLP-1 drugs benefit those with diabetes or obesity, but more than double the risk of acute pancreatitis and cause other side effects.

Although GLP-1 drugs have skyrocketed in popularity over the past few years, due to the benefits they provide for diabetes and weight loss, new research has found that side effects of Ozempic, Mounjaro and other similar medications significantly increase the risk of gastrointestinal complications, including acute pancreatitis.

In a study published in the medical journal Nature Medicine on January 20, researchers with the Veterans Research and Education Foundation of St. Louis analyzed the overall risks and benefits of Ozempic and other drugs included in the class of medications known as glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists.

This class of medications has grown rapidly in the last couple of years, as both diabetes treatments like Ozempic, Mounjaro and Trulicity, and weight loss drugs, like Wegovy and Zepbound have found increased use.

However, while many studies have heralded the drugs’ benefits, particularly for metabolic issues linked to diabetes, many researchers have cautioned that there are potentially serious health risks as well, such as stomach paralysis and intestinal blockages. There are now thousands of Ozempic lawsuits, Wegovy lawsuits, Mounjaro lawsuits being pursued by former users left with devastating injuries, each raising similar allegations that the drug makers intentionally minimized these risks and failed to adequately disclose the potential side effects.

The new study, led by Dr. Ziyad Al-Aly of Washington University in St. Louis, sought to quantify those benefits and risks by comparing their effects on veterans by using data from the Veterans Affairs electronic health records. The study involved data on 215,970 veterans who were new users of GLP-1 drugs, and compared them to the results of 1.2 million veterans who used other diabetes treatments from October 2017 through December 2023.

Researchers analyzed 175 health outcomes and found benefits in 42, including reduced risks of Alzheimer’s disease, addiction, infections, respiratory failure, clotting disorders, stroke and heart disease.

The researchers emphasized that most of the observed improvements were modest and primarily linked to weight loss, benefiting mainly diabetics and those who are overweight. They also suggested that GLP-1 drugs may reduce addictive behaviors by suppressing the brain’s impulse control and reward system.

However, the researchers warned that despite the limited benefits, drugs like Ozempic and Mounjaro also carry increased risks for 19 adverse health outcomes, primarily affecting the gastrointestinal system. These include conditions such as gastroparesis, diverticulosis, gastritis, abdominal pain, nausea, as well as issues like hypotension, syncope, sleep disturbances and interstitial nephritis.

In addition, the team pointed out that GLP-1 side effects appear to be linked to nearly two and half times the risk of developing acute pancreatitis.

“There was an increased risk of gastrointestinal disorders, hypotension, syncope, arthritic disorders, nephrolithiasis, interstitial nephritis and drug-induced pancreatitis associated with GLP-1RA use compared to usual care,” the researchers concluded. “The results provide insights into the benefits and risks of GLP-1RAs and may be useful for informing clinical care and guiding research agendas.”

January 2025 GLP-1 Side Effects Lawsuits Update

The findings may play a role in more than 1,300 lawsuits currently being pursued against the makers of Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro and other similar diabetes and weight loss drugs, each raising similar allegations that a desire for increased profits was placed above consumer safety by failing to research and disclose gastroparesis side effects users may experience.

Given common questions of fact and law raised in complaints filed throughout the federal court system, all GLP-1 lawsuits have been centralized as part of a multidistrict litigation (MDL) in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, where they are currently being overseen by U.S. District Judge Karen Marston.

Judge Marston has directed the parties to focus in the early stages of the litigation on “cross cutting” issues, which will impact a large number of claims. This includes discovery and pretrial motions regarding general causation evidence about the link between Ozempic and ileus, gastroparesis and other injuries, as well as questions about whether the claims are preempted by federal law and whether plaintiffs will be required to provide specific testing evidence to establish they suffered an injury.

Following the resolution of those issues, Judge Marston is expected to direct the parties to select representative GLP-1 lawsuits for early bellwether test trials, to help gauge how juries will respond to evidence and expert testimony likely to be repeated throughout the litigation.

While the outcomes of such early test trials are not binding on other claims, they could help potentially facilitate a GLP-1 settlement agreement that would avoid the need for each individual case to be set for trial in the future.