Summary: The diabetes drugs Wegovy and Ozempic, which contain semaglutide, significantly reduce the incidence and recurrence of alcohol use disorder (AUD). Analyzing health data, the researchers observed a 50% to 56% decrease in AUD among patients treated with semaglutide.
These findings suggest a potential new treatment for AUD. The study highlights the need for further clinical trials.
Key facts:
- Semaglutide, found in Wegovy and Ozempic, reduces alcohol use disorder by 50%-56%.
- The study analyzed the electronic health records of nearly 84,000 obese patients.
- The findings may lead to new treatments for AUD, but further clinical trials are needed.
Source: Case Western Reserve
A new study by researchers at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine finds that the popular diabetes and weight loss drugs Wegovy and Ozempic are associated with reduced incidence and relapse of alcohol abuse or dependence.
The team’s findings, recently published in the journal Nature Communications, may suggest a potential new treatment for excessive alcohol use — including alcohol use disorder (AUD), a health condition that causes about 178,000 deaths in the United States each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control.
To date, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved only three medications for the treatment of AUD.
The active ingredient in Wegovy and Ozempic is semaglutide, which belongs to a class of medicines known as glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists. GLP-1 helps regulate blood sugar in type 2 diabetes and reduces appetite.
Researchers examined the electronic health records of nearly 84,000 obese patients. They found that those treated with semaglutide, compared with those treated with other anti-obesity medications, showed a 50% to 56% reduction in both the onset and recurrence of alcohol use disorder in the following year.
“This is very promising news in that we may have a new therapeutic method to treat AUD,” said Rong Xu, a professor of biomedical informatics at the School of Medicine and lead researcher of the study.
Xu, also director of the medical school’s Center for Artificial Intelligence in Drug Discovery, was joined by medical school co-authors Nathan Berger, the Hanna-Payne Professor of Experimental Medicine, and Pamela Davis, the Arline H. and Curtis F. Garvin Research Professor. Nora D. Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, also co-authored the study.
“We gathered real-world evidence in a similar way to our two previous studies reported earlier this year,” Berger said.
“In January, we showed that semaglutide is associated with a reduction in suicidal ideation, and in March, we demonstrated that semaglutide is also associated with a reduction in new diagnoses and recurrence of cannabis use disorder.”
Similar findings were replicated when the team examined electronic health records for nearly 600,000 patients with type 2 diabetes. Again, they found consistent reductions in diagnoses of alcohol use disorders among those treated with semaglutide.
“While the findings are promising and provide preliminary evidence of the potential benefit of semaglutide in AUD in real-world populations,” Davis said, “further randomized clinical trials are needed to support its use clinically for AUD.”
About this neuropharmacology and AUD research news
Author: Rong Xu
Source: Case Western Reserve
Contact: Rong Xu – Case Western Reserve
Image: Image is credited to Neuroscience News
Original research: Open access.
“Associations of semaglutide with incidence and recurrence of alcohol use disorder in real-world population” by Rong Xu et al. Nature Communications
ABSTRACT
Associations of semaglutide with incidence and recurrence of alcohol use disorder in a real-world population
Alcohol use disorders are among the leading causes of global disease burden, yet therapeutic interventions are limited. The reduced urge to drink in patients treated with semaglutide has raised interest regarding its potential therapeutic benefits for alcohol use disorders.
In this retrospective cohort study of electronic health records of 83,825 obese patients, we show that semaglutide compared with other antiobesity medications is associated with a 50%–56% lower risk of both incidence and recurrence of obesity. of alcohol use for a 12. – month follow-up period.
Consistent reductions were seen for patients stratified by sex, age group, race, and in patients with and without type 2 diabetes. Similar findings were replicated in the study population of 598,803 patients with type 2 diabetes.
These findings provide evidence of the potential benefit of semaglutide in AUD in real-world populations and warrant further randomized clinical trials.
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