Wegovy pill approved in US as first oral GLP-1 for weight mgmt

Novo Nordisk has announced that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the Wegovy pill (once-daily oral semaglutide 25 mg) to reduce excess body weight and maintain weight reduction long term and to reduce the risk of major adverse cardiovascular events.

- Our Bureau, Mumbai

The Wegovy pill is the first oral glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist therapy approved for weight management. The approval is based on the OASIS trial programme and the SELECT trial. In the OASIS 4 trial, oral semaglutide 25 mg taken once daily demonstrated 16.6% mean weight loss when treatment was adhered to in adult participants with obesity or overweight with one or more comorbidities1. The weight loss achieved with the Wegovy pill is similar to that of injectable Wegovy 2.4 mg. Furthermore, one in three people experienced 20% or greater weight loss in the OASIS 4 trial. The well-known safety and tolerability profile of semaglutide was reaffirmed with the Wegovy pill in the OASIS-4 trial, which was comparable to previous trials with semaglutide for weight management.