It seems like everyone is taking or talking about the latest lose-weight-quick drug, semaglutide. Versions are marketed by various companies under the names Ozempic, Mounjaro, and Wegovy. The apparently remarkable results of the drug have brought celebrities such as Elon Musk, Chelsea Handler, and Oprah Winfrey on the semaglutide bandwagon.
But doctors are warning of the serious complications some patients may face. The drugs were originally developed to help those suffering from diabetes to stabilize their blood sugar, and sometimes also to lose weight as obesity can contribute to the severity of diabetes.
They work by slowing down the digestion of food significantly, and also have the effect of dampening appetite. People eat less, and process their food more slowly, leading to weight loss. It is common in America for drugs for medical conditions to be used for conditions other than what they were designed to treat, and Americans are always searching for a “miracle cure” when it comes to weight loss. Since patients who use semaglutide experience their weight loss as effortless since they are not suffering through hunger as they slim down, the appeal is obvious.
But what if you have to have surgery? Doctors say using the drugs can lead to complications that can be life-threatening. A recent study by UTHealth Houston found that half of surgical patients on the drug were found to have “significant gastric contents” in their stomachs and intestine while being prepped for surgery. In plain terms, they were full of undigested food, even though they had followed the protocol of fasting before their operations.
Surgeons don’t want to operate on you with a full stomach due to the danger of something called pulmonary aspiration—food being inhaled into the lungs. The condition can kill. Even if the result is not death, pulmonary aspiration can permanently damage the lungs and lead to infections which themselves,
Dr. Alfred Bonatie of the Bonati Spine Institute in Florida said that general anesthesia can cause nausea, which increases the risk of vomiting. Combined with the leftover food that semaglutide can leave in a patient’s stomach, the risk of vomiting and aspirating that vomit can be substantial.
It is best to stop taking these medications at least a week before any surgery, according to Dr. Brett Osborn, a neurosurgeon at St. Mary’s Medical Center in Florida.
And it is not just pulmonary aspiration doctors and patients have to worry about, he said, but also bowel ischemia. This is a rare condition that restricts blood flow to the intestines, and it can be dangerous.
And if that were not enough, the drugs actually induce a mild state of malnutrition as part of how they work. Dr. Osborn reminds that good nutrition is essential for the body to be able to heal properly and on time after the trauma of surgery.
