A weight loss injection has been approved by the UK medicines regulator for use in preventing heart attacks and strokes in overweight or obese adults.
Wegovy, brand of the drug semaglutide, had already received the green light for weight control in people with obesity.
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has now allowed it to be used to help overweight or obese people reduce their risk of heart problems.
Wegovy is the first weight loss medicine to be approved in the UK as a preventative method for “established cardiovascular diseases”.
It can be prescribed for people with a body mass index (BMI) of 27 or more and who have already been diagnosed with cardiovascular disease – a term that describes conditions related to the heart or blood vessels.
Wegovy, made by Novo Nordisk, typically works by making people feel fuller and less hungry.
It does so by imitating the hormone GLP-1, which is used to regulate blood sugar levels and increase insulin secretion. This reduces the amount of glucose, or sugar, produced by the liver.
By reducing the amount of sugar produced, it decreases how quickly food is digested.
Risk of heart attack or stroke is reduced by a fifth – study
The approval comes as a new study, involving 17,600 people, found that taking it as an injection once a week for up to five years could reduce a person’s risk of suffering a serious cardiovascular event – such as a heart attack or stroke. %.
Although the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has not yet approved the use of the treatment, Professor Sir Stephen Powis, national medical director for NHS England, is feeling positive.
He said this could “help reduce cardiovascular risks for high-risk patients, potentially preventing heart attacks and strokes, and giving more people the chance at a healthier future.”
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Shirley Hooper of the MHRA called it “an important step forward in tackling the serious health consequences of obesity”.
She also said she was confident that “appropriate regulatory standards for safety, quality and efficacy” were met.
There have been previous challenges around supply of the drug, with Novo Nordisk warning earlier this year that there were supply constraints and that it would focus on supplying “those with the greatest ongoing need”.
However, for the NHS, the company claims there is “a protected supply”, while non-NHS supply will remain “constrained and limited for the foreseeable future”.
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