More than 100 US deaths linked to Ozempic and similar weight loss drugs – including 28-year-old who died from ‘intestinal mass’ and a pregnant woman, our analysis shows
- Fatalities included a person in their 20s who suffered from an ‘intestinal mass’
- Experts said the cases indicated a ‘suspicion’ that the drugs were involved
DAILYMAIL
Fat loss shots like Ozempic and Zepbound have been linked to more than 100 deaths in the US, DailyMail.com can reveal.
One of the victims was a person in their 20s who developed an ‘intestinal mass’ and another was a pregnant woman.
The cases have been recorded in an FDA monitoring system used to track the safety of medicines used in the US, called FAERS.
None of the deaths are proven to have been directly caused by the injections. But experts say the reports indicate cases where the drugs were suspected to have been involved.
There are also concerns about counterfeit versions of the drugs which are becoming more common as patients struggle to get the real thing.
Fake versions have been found to contain insulin which if not used in correct doses can cause seizures, a coma and even death.
The youngest patient with information was a 28-year-old woman who was hospitalized and diagnosed with an ‘intestinal mass’.
Another fatality involved a woman who took Ozempic while she was pregnant, which the drug maker advises against after studies in pregnant rats on the drug showed their offspring had growth problems and developmental abnormalities.
In total, the FDA’s system has recorded 117 fatalities among people taking blockbuster weight loss drugs since 2018.
Of these, 81 were linked to patients using semaglutide — the active ingredient in Ozempic and Wegovy — while 36 were linked to patients using tirzepatide, the ingredient in Mounjaro and Zepbound.
More than half of the fatalities linked to semaglutide — 54 deaths, or 66 percent — were recorded after a version of the drug, Wegovy, was approved for weight loss in June 2021. Ozempic has not been approved for weight loss but is prescribed off-label for this use.
No deaths have been recorded linked to tirzepatide after a version of the drug — Zepbound — was approved for weight loss, but it only got the green light for this use in November 2023.
Symptoms recorded ranged from seizures to blockages in the intestines and pancreatic cancer.
