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The American College of Physicians issued new guidelines for the treatment of type 2 diabetes, which for the first time recommend the use of GLP-1 and another class of diabetes drugs called SGLT-2 along with metformin, although this may exacerbate the ongoing drug shortages of several LPGs. -1s.
An Ozempic (semaglutide) injection pen is seen on the kitchen table.
Key factors
GLP-1s are drugs designed to control obesity and type 2 diabetes by interacting with the hunger part of the brain to suppress appetite and lower blood sugar and A1C, while SGLT-2s lower blood sugar levels by preventing the kidneys from reabsorbing the sugar. made by the body
The ACP recommends treating type 2 diabetes with GLP-1 agonists to reduce the risk of all-cause death, major adverse cardiovascular events, and stroke, and recommends using SGLT-2 to reduce the risk of all-cause death, major adverse cardiovascular events. , progression of chronic kidney disease and hospitalization for congestive heart failure, according to a new study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine.
In the updated guidelines, the ACP also recommends against using DPP-4 inhibitors along with metformin, because new evidence showed that DPP-4s did not reduce disease or death.
However, the high costs of GLP-1, which can go up to around $1,070, and SGLT-2, the most common SGLT-2 costs around $650, can be a significant barrier to providing patients with access to the treatment, according to an accompanying editorial by Fatima Zyed, M.D., M.D., MD, Internal Medicine, Division of General Internal Medicine, Duke University.
This is an update to the 2017 ACP guidelines, which recommended that doctors prescribe metformin to patients with type 2 diabetes and recommended the use of other diabetes drugs such as SGLT-2 and DPP-4 as secondary medications to help improve high blood sugar.
Will this affect the supply of Glp-1?
Some GLP-1 drugs are already in short supply due to high demand. While all doses of diabetes drug Ozempic are available, all doses of Nordisks Wegovy weight loss drug are in short supply except for the highest dose, 2.4 milligrams. Nordisk has not provided a time frame for when it will improve supply. Nordisk told Forbes that it will gradually increase supply of all doses of Wegovy over the rest of the year, and said in its annual report that it was looking at ways to remove bottlenecks in the supply chain , such as making disposable injection pens. All doses of Eli Lilly’s diabetes drug Mounjaro and its weight-loss drug Zepbound containing the active ingredient tirzepatide are in short supply until at least the end of June, except for the 2.5-milligram doses, according to the Food and Drug Administration’s drug shortage database. The 2.5-milligram doses are the lowest dose Lilly offers, and patients are often dosed when they are first prescribed the drugs. Patients usually stay on one dose for at least four weeks and then progress to the next higher dose, but this may not be an option for some if the drugs are still in short supply. Lilly told NBC News that it plans to open a new manufacturing facility in North Carolina later this year to help increase supply.
Big Number
38.4 million. That’s how many Americans had diabetes in 2021, totaling 11.6% of the population, according to data from the American Diabetes Association. Another 97.6 million people over the age of 18 had prediabetes.
key fund
Much research has been conducted on the effects of GLP-1 on diabetes and weight loss. During a 72-week trial, participants saw a substantial and sustained reduction in body weight taking tirzepatide, regardless of drug dose, a 2022 study found. Participants taking semaglutide, the active ingredient in Ozempic, and Wegovylost, an average of 15% of body fat, according to a 2021 study. German researchers found that semaglutide offered improvements in blood sugar and weight loss for type 2 diabetics after a trial of six months. According to research published in JAMA Network Open, tirzepatide strongly improved blood glucose levels and aided weight loss in patients with type 2 diabetes.
To read more
Wegovy: Here’s When Weight Loss Drug Supply Could Improve This Year (Forbes)
Ozempic and other drugs list price rises: Here’s what it means for consumers (Forbes)
What to know about Ozempic: Diabetes drug becomes viral weight-loss hit (Elon Musk brags about using it) creating a shortage (Forbes)
Diabetes drug Mounjaro expected to be approved for weight loss soon: What to know and how it compares to similar drugs (Forbes)
As Zepbound shortage grows, Eli Lilly says no immediate end in sight (NBC News)
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Image Source : www.forbes.com